It's a Lonely Life
by nomundanes
Summary: Izzy has convinced Alec that he needs to go see the world, but while in New York he starts to feel lonely and homesick, and that's when he meets the glamorous Magnus Bane. Realizing that despite his glamorous lifestyle, Bane is lonely, Alec decides to stay with him for a while. (Izzy is Alec's older sister in this one, since she owns a pub back home) (Sorry about the shitty title!)
1. Chapter 1

**The Photographer**

New York was not all he had hoped it to be. Alec had thought that New York was nothing but high fashion and hot models, so he could learn something from it and impress his sister back home, but it wasn't anything like that. He was beginning to think that what he felt maybe wasn't wanderlust after all. He couldn't just drive around America in his van for months on end, because honestly he hated being alone. Where he came from privacy wasn't exactly a well-known term. He knew how his life had been planned out, and it was only because his sister had told him to go see the world before settling down for a job in the small town that he was now here in a café sipping a skinny something-he-couldn't-pronounce-properly. But it was also the only reason as to why he would ever meet _him_ – a dark-haired beauty with cheekbones that could kill. He walked up to the counter casually and tapped on the desk, while ordering an Americano. Alec wrinkled his nose at that, because there was really no other way to destroy good espresso than by mixing it with boiling water. Unfortunately that was the moment the other guy chose to turn his head and notice Alec. His first sight of Alec was of him frowning.

"Something wrong?" He looked up and down Alec. Unlike Alec, who was probably looking more like a lumberjack from Portland, this guy was wearing a nice suit with one hand in a pocket of his dress pants.

"Do you always order Americano?" Alec wondered.

"Yes?"

"Alright then."

"Is that it?" The guy looked sort of disappointed and that's when Alec noticed – he had a certain glow about his eyes, they were almost yellow and he looked superiorly at Alec, but he also seemed intrigued. Alec had learned early on to read people's expression. It was amazing what someone's small twitch of an eye could tell you about them, even if they hadn't intended to show it to you. Alec gaped suddenly, unwillingly.

"I would have warned you if you hadn't tried it before. It's my least favorite coffee," Alec said, when he had collected himself again. The guy took his coffee and left the café. Alec made a quick decision to follow the guy, he gathered his things and ran after him.

"Look, dude…" the guy turned as he felt Alec follow him.

"I'm sorry I was just wondering…" Alec noticed the guy looked bored and impatient, and changed his mind. "Do you know where the Empire State Building is?"

The guy sniggered and looked up behind him at an enormous building. Alec hit himself on the forehead.

"Of course. Sorry," he tried to suppress a laugh, but instead it came out an awful sound. Luckily, the guy smiled at that.

"Look, I'm already late for work, but here's my card if you ever need a tour guide in the New York night life. I work half the day. Sleep most of the afternoon, and party all night." He handed Alec a card, and he felt the guy's soft fingers as they brushed over his own. Alec was mesmerized for a second, while he watched the man walk away. His dress pants were tighter than Alec had seen any man wear before, but it looked fashionable. Once he was out of sight, Alec looked down at the card, half expecting it to be blank or be some sort of prank.

'MAGNUS BANE – FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY'

And then it had a number and a work address. This was a real business card. Magnus Bane? Why did that sound familiar? Smiling to himself, he walked back into the café, absentmindedly ordered an Americano and called up his sister.

"Alec!" she cheered as she answered her phone.

"Izzy, something weird just happened to me," he began.

"Uh-oh, did you get mugged? I should have told you to steer around New York. Remember I told you about my _friend_ Meliorn, who got mugged in New York?"

"I didn't get mugged, Izzy," he sighed. "I got a business card." He needed advice, and when it came to advice about men his sister was the only expert he knew.

"Really? What kind of business card?"

"Fashion photography?"

"But you don't do photography? Uh, did they want you to model for them? I always told you that with your blue eyes and complexion you should do modeling," she said casually.

"He didn't say. But he did take his time to brush my hand while handing it to me. Do you think all he wanted was business?" Alec wondered. There was a silence on the other end of the line.

"He wants to do you," she finally said.

"Like do a photoshoot with me?"

"No, dumbass, he wants to _do_ you," she just emphasized her own words. "Was he hot?" Alec wanted to say 'incredibly' or 'extremely', but he also wanted to act cool about it.

"He was all right." He was beyond all right, Alec thought to himself. "His name was Magnus Bane, does that mean anything to you?" Another silence, but this time he could hear her hyperventilating. "I'm guessing you know who that is?"

"Are you kidding? His pictures are plastered all over my walls!" she exclaimed. That explained why he recognized the name. "He modeled as a child, and then he grew up to become a fashion photographer. Alec, he takes pictures of all the fashionable actors and musicians!"

"Oh," Alec's hopes for seeing the guy again went down.

"You have to call him!"

"He sounds like a busy guy, I don't want to bother him," he shrugged to himself and sipped his Americano, spitting half of it down into the cup again after one taste – nope, still an awful way to serve coffee.

"If he gave you his card he definitely wants you to bother him!"

"I'll think about it," he promised.

"Call him!" she demanded.

"Say hello to the others back home. Bye, Izzy," he hung up, smiling at his demanding older sister. She had been very supportive of him coming out. His parents however had needed some getting used to. He supposed it was understandable. Jace had offered to be his wingman, but he had never taken him up on it. Simon had explained how he had had to come out as a Jew in a non-Jewish school. And Clary had just shrugged, and said "oh" like it was no big deal. He sometimes forgot to appreciate his friends, but he was really glad to have them. Someone took him out of his reverie, when a name was called.

"Magnus Bane?"

Alec looked up at the acne-attacked boy serving the coffee. The boy was looking at a wallet. He repeated the name, and Alec stood up.

"I know the guy. Mr. Bane, is it his wallet?"

"Yeah," the boy looked surprised that someone responded.

"I can bring it to him. I was going to see him later anyway," he offered. The boy narrowed his eyes.

"Nice try."

"You saw me talking to him earlier? The tall Asian guy with dark hair and slightly yellow eyes?"

"I didn't notice him," the boy said, unimpressed. Alec sighed.

"Look, I'll call him and let him know I'll bring him the wallet." Alec found his phone and typed in the number on the card.

"Bane's office?" a woman answered.

"Hi, this is Alexander Lightwood. I'm at a café with Mr. Bane's wallet. It seems he dropped it here," Alec looked over at the still unimpressed busboy.

"Hold on," she said and he heard a tone sending him to another line.

"Hello?" Alec recognized the voice immediately – a voice of confidence.

"This is Alexander- Alec Lightwood, we met earlier and I'm still here at the café, where an employee just found your wallet?" he said it like a question.

"Brilliant! I thought I'd been mugged on the way to work. Would it be too much trouble for you to bring it to me? I will of course pay for your time," Magnus Bane said.

"No, no trouble at all. But I think you'll have to convince the young employee that you trust me," Alec said and handed the boy his phone.

"Of course I remember you, Mr. Bane. Sure," the boy said and handed Alec the phone and the wallet.

"I'm at work. You have the address?"

"Yes," Alec smiled triumphantly at the busboy, who still seemed completely unimpressed.

Alec decided to walk the distance down town, because it would probably be quicker than his old van in this traffic. He didn't have much trouble finding it, because across one of the larger buildings he could easily make out the window that had the huge letters written across it, saying "BANE PHOTOGRAPHY AND STUDIO".

A young woman greeted him at the reception just inside the building.

"I'm here to see Magnus Bane?" Alec leaned over the counter, realizing he might come off as the hillbilly he probably was, and leaned back again. The woman looked up and she started smiling. It was an endearing sort of smile.

"You're here for the shoot?"

"What? Oh, no I…" he began, but she cut him off.

"You need to go to the elevator and take it down to the basement. Mr. Bane wants the shoot to have a realistically raw edge, that's why he changed it to the basement last minute," she smiled up at him. He cracked a smile, and left for the elevator. Did she think he was an employee? Well, she said he would be in the basement, so that's where he was going.

Entering the basement he was welcomed by half naked people running around, looking busy and stressed. A beautiful white haired woman came over to him with a sigh of relief.

"Please tell me you're here on behalf of Raphael? If he's calling it off three hours late, I swear to God!" she begged him.

"No, I'm…"

"Shit!" she turned around and left him again, while yelling. "He's a no-show, Magnus! I told you not to hire scum!"

Alec now saw Mr. Bane again and he seemed even more breathtaking in the light of the basement. The other man noticed him and smiled, ignoring the hysteric woman yelling at him.

"Alexander!" he welcomed. He had remembered his name. Alec held out the wallet.

"This is yours," he smiled nervously.

"Thank you very much. How can I return the favor?" Magnus seemed more at ease now than earlier, despite the stress surrounding him. Perhaps he was one of those people who thrived on action and stressful situations.

"Don't worry about it," Alec said.

"Let me take you out for drinks this afternoon?" the other guy offered. Alec's mouth fell open, but he wasn't sure what to say. Magnus waited expectantly. Alec had never been asked out before, and he wasn't even sure that's what happened. He couldn't just assume Magnus was gay. Alec really had awful gaydar.

"You haven't even looked to see if I've taken anything from your wallet, and you're trusting me to go out for drinks?" Alec tried to play it cool.

"I believe you are an honest man, Alec Lightwood," he grinned, and the sound of him saying Alec's full name sent a flutter through his body. "So?"

"MAGNUS!" the woman came up behind him, and he turned calmly to look at her. "Honestly, how are you this calm? You know he's not showing up. He's never showing up. I don't know why you bother with him."

"Camille, calm down. We still have a week."

"Who does he think he is?!" she said, before once again looking at Alec. She cocked her head slightly, and studied him. "Darling, do you do nudes?"

"Excuse me?" Alec's eyes widened. Magnus suppressed a grin.

"You have to excuse my colleague, she doesn't do well with stress. You should really find a new line of work, sweetheart," Magnus told her. She turned on her heels and walked away.

"What's going on?" Alec asked hesitantly.

"We had a photoshoot with Raphael Santiago today, but he's already three hours late and no word," Magnus explained. And Alec couldn't stop himself, before his expression revealed that he knew exactly who Raphael Santiago was. Magnus noticed, and Alec blushed. Raphael Santiago was a famous porn star, he mainly did gay porn and he was quite popular on the Internet.

"I thought you did fashion shoots?"

"It is. The porn industry is gaining popularity, and Raphael agreed to a fashion shoot to raise awareness," Magnus shrugged. "So how about those drinks?"

"Your colleague said nudes?" Alec ignored his question.

"Nearly nudes. It's an issue on underwear," Magnus seemed amused by Alec's interest. "Alexander, do I have to ask you one more time?" he wondered, and Alec had a feeling that Magnus often got what he wanted without effort. Yet, he seemed unconcerned about the fact that the famous porn star had just stood him up.

"One drink sounds good," he shrugged. Without taking his eyes off Alec, Magnus yelled to his colleague.

"Camille, I'll get in touch with Raphael later. We're going for drinks. Business meeting," he smirked.

"With that boy?" Camille sounded contempt. He turned to face her.

"Business," he repeated and the two of them left.

Magnus brought Alec to a quiet and chic bar not long from his work building. He explained that he liked to start his evenings quietly and then work his way up if he felt like it.

"Where do you usually go out?" he asked.

"Me?" Alec said. Of course he meant him. "I don't usually go out. Well, my sister owns a bar, so that's really the only place back home. It's not a big town or anything," he shrugged.

"Do you have a lot of siblings?"

"I have three. Technically Jace isn't my brother, but my parents adopted him, because his mother died giving birth to him and his father was a good friend of the family, but he died when Jace was eleven," Alec told.

"That's horrible," Magnus looked down into his drink.

"What about you?"

"Only child. I'm pretty sure my father is the devil himself, and I've only seen him once since my mother divorced him when I was only two years old. My mother passed away," he bottomed the rest of his cocktail and waved at a waiter.

"That sounds lonely?"

"I have friends," Magnus smiled softly.

"Of course, I didn't mean…"

"I thought Raphael was also my friend, but what do you know." So he was upset about the no-show after all.

"Sorry," Alec shrugged. The waiter came down with two other drinks. Alec had barely gotten through his first drink. It was too sweet and sour at the same time. It wasn't like the scotch or lager that Izzy usually served him.

"It's not your fault the kid is an unthankful little bastard. If you don't like your drink I can order something else for you?" he offered, and Alec was taken aback for a second because of the sudden change of subject.

"It's only four o'clock?"

"Your point?" Magnus raised an eyebrow.

"I could use a beer?" Alec had a feeling that he shouldn't try to judge this guy. He was surprised to find that he was attracted to the demanding and bossy attitude that Magnus expressed, but he still wasn't sure if Magnus even liked guys. How did people usually bring it up?

After a few beers and Magnus telling a story of how he had landed Raphael his career, Magnus stood up suddenly.

"Let's go somewhere else," he said. Alec stood up.

"Where?"

"Somewhere with music," he said and walked out of the bar. The bar had music, but supposedly he wanted it to be louder. Magnus dragged him across the street, and into a club.

"I don't usually go to clubs," Alec said apologetically. He didn't really like this kind of crowd. Magnus narrowed his eyes.

"You're not underage, are you?"

"No?" Why did it come out as a question? He knew he wasn't underage.

"Good," he said, and dragged him to the dance floor, where Alec quickly lost him. He tried to sway along with the music, but he had no rhythm. A few moments later Magnus came back into view with no other than Raphael Santiago. "Raphael, this is Alec." Raphael looked terrified by the look of Alec.

"Ew! What is that?" he pointed at Alec's black sweatshirt.

"American Apparel?" Alec said. This seemed to dissatisfy him even more.

"No. Nope. Bye Magnus," he said and walked away.

"Seems like a nice guy," Alec said wryly, and Magnus laughed.

For some reason, Alec stayed for several hours. He was tired and he wanted nothing more than to go back and collapse in his van, but something about Magnus kept him interested, even after girls had started crowding around him and he was having his arms around at least two of them. Eventually, he had come over with a few of the girls, almost trying to give them away to Alec, but of course Alec didn't care much for the girls.

"Do you want to go home?" Magnus said, hanging on to two girls. He had trouble finding his balance, and something about the scene made Alec sad. It wasn't because the man was drunk and probably going home with at least two girls, and not Alec. It was because the man had seemed so at home in his workplace, and now a completely different person seemed to emerge as the drinks kept coming. The guy had to be lonely, even if he denied it, and for that Alec felt sad.

"I want to go back to my van," he said.

"Don't be silly. You can crash on my couch. Or join us. Ladies, you wouldn't mind?" he looked at the two girls and they giggled, biting their lips as they measured an uncomfortable Alec.

Somehow, Alec had let Magnus convince him to go back with them. The apartment was huge, well, it was more like a loft. He was horrified when he found that it was all one big room. Sure, he'd divided a small space into a bedroom by putting up half transparent walls. It wasn't going to cover enough if Magnus was going to have a threesome in there, while Alec sat on the couch. The three of them disappeared up to the bed, while Alec looked around. Everything looked high fashion, but he couldn't be sure. For a photographer he didn't have a lot of pictures hanging around. Alec did find one picture of a child model. He assumed it was Magnus. He had just fallen down onto the couch with a huge sigh, when the two girls appeared, walking towards the door.

"Your friend passed out," one of them shrugged and they both left.

Alec got up and walked up to check on Magnus. He lay on top of a sea of blankets and pillows, no shirt and his pants were halfway off. Alec helped him out of his pants and rolled him off a blanket, so he could wrap him up in it. Before he could leave, Magnus grabbed his wrist.

"Alec?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you know how old I am?" he asked. Alec thought it was an odd thing to ask, but then again, he had to be really drunk to pass out on two girls.

"Twenty-four?" he guessed.

"I turned thirty last week," he said. Alec wouldn't have guessed it, but he also didn't understand the big deal. Maybe he was too young to understand what it was like to turn thirty?

"Okay?"

"You think that's old?"

"No, I don't," he assured him, but he wasn't sure Magnus had heard him, because he was fast asleep again. Alec went out and placed himself on the couch again, but he couldn't sleep. He had had a lot of beers, but he didn't feel drunk anymore. Instead his mind was occupied all night by the stranger lying drunk in the bed. Alec was twenty-one, and he didn't think thirty was old. He kept obsessing over small details of his day, such as his first meeting with Magnus, where he'd been dismissive, or later when he'd been completely grateful for Alec to bring his wallet. And now he'd seen a third side of him, and all within a day. He couldn't help but wanting to know more about him. There had to be a reason for the man's behavior. Before he realized he'd been awake all night staring at the ceiling, Magnus woke up and came out from behind the nearly transparent walls, looking hungover. Alec sat up on his elbows.

"Have you been sleeping there?" Magnus wondered, clearing his eyes.

"You don't remember?"

"Oh no, I didn't take advantage of you, did I?" he asked. Alec blushed. Would it be so awful if he had? It seemed to be a repelling thought, according to Magnus' expression.

"No, you didn't. The girls left though."

"What girls?"

"The ones you brought home last night?" Alec said, a bit concerned that he didn't remember, but also not entirely surprised.

"Right. Coffee?" he offered, and Alec jumped to his feet.

"Let me," he said and went to the kitchen.

"Why are you not hungover?"

"I had beer. You had cocktails," he shrugged. He knew alcoholic drinks had a worse effect than beer, but Magnus seemed unfamiliar with beer. Besides, he hadn't had as many as Magnus. Magnus went to sit down by his kitchen island, while Alec made espresso. He handed Magnus the first cup and the man reacted almost as if he'd had brain-freeze, but surely that couldn't be it.

"What did you do to it?"

"That's how you're supposed to serve espresso," Alec said.

"I need some water in it," he held out the tiny cup.

"No, just drink it. It's no worse than the shots you took last night."

"Shots? Well, that explains it," he wrinkled his nose and poured the rest of the espresso down his throat.

"You need another one for that headache," Alec said and took the cup to make another one.

"Are you trying to parent me, Lightwood?"

"Someone ought to," Alec said, holding his breath, waiting for hell to break loose. Instead Magnus flashed a smile, the smile of a heartbreaker. It made Alec's knees weak, and he couldn't help but smile back.

"How old are you?" he wondered.

"Twenty-one."

"Do you know how old I am?"

"Thirty," Alec said. Magnus looked taken aback. "What, you think you could hide it with botox?" Alec teased.

"No," Magnus looked amused. Espresso always helped with the hangover. "People are often surprised. I have one of those eternal youthful looks. Or so I've been told, but apparently not. And I don't use botox. I do use glitter sometimes though."

"I know. You told me your age last night, before you passed out," Alec admitted.

"No shit," he said, and then shrugged it off. His phone rang and he got up to answer it. Alec tried to make himself useful and washed the espresso cups. His stomach complained. He hadn't had much to eat yesterday, and he realized Magnus hadn't eaten either. When Magnus returned he was rolling his eyes. "Raphael is coming in today. Hopefully," he sighed.

"You're not too hungover?" Alec raised an eyebrow.

"You need to stop parenting me. It's distracting," he chuckled.

"Why? Daddy issues?" he wondered. Magnus flashed another brilliant smile.

"You wish," he said. "In all seriousness though, if you don't have anything better to do today, your espresso-making skills would be highly appreciated?" he offered.

"Are you offering me an assistant job? I'm twenty-one," Alec crossed his arms, now that he knew Magnus enjoyed his little games.

"Only for the day, and all the assistants in New York are twenty-one these days," he grinned. "Besides, Camille isn't coming in today and I just won't be able to deal with Raphael alone."

"What do you mean, he seemed like such a delight last night?" Alec smirked.

"Please save me from the misery of his company?" Magnus let his head fall down dramatically on the kitchen island.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Porn Star**

If only Izzy could see him now, Alec thought, as he sat in an armchair watching Magnus set up his gear and waiting for a porn star. Maybe he could brag a little. Or maybe she wouldn't know who Raphael was? Of course she would, she was the biggest fag hag he knew. He sent her a text telling her what he was doing. It didn't take her long to answer, but she didn't answer with a text message, instead he opened a file with the sound of her voice screaming. He turned it off immediately, but Magnus turned to look at him.

"What was that?"

"Nothing," Alec said, sounding guilty as all hell. Magnus shrugged and turned back to his work. After about an hour, when Magnus had finally finished setting up, Raphael came wandering into the basement studio with sunglasses on.

"Look what the cat dragged in," Magnus smirked.

"Ugh, so loud. Keep your voice down," Raphael frowned, and took off his sunglasses.

"Sounds like he needs some of your espresso, Alec." Raphael turned to look at Alec.

"What is he doing here?"

"He is keeping me company," Magnus said and guided Raphael to the make-up table.

"He's still wearing that awful shirt," the boy sulked. Magnus hadn't given any people notice to come in today, so he had to do the boy's make-up and hair himself. Alec felt surprised, considering how professional the company was.

"Where's Camille?" Raphael demanded.

"She didn't want to sit around waiting for you for forty-eight hours straight," Magnus said. It was like watching a little brat and his very patient foster parent. Alec tried to hide his amusement, but no one was paying attention to him anyway, not even when he handed Raphael a cup of espresso. However, the boy showed his appreciation when he had a taste of it by exclaiming, "Dios mio, just like my mother made it."

Alec hid in the back of the room most of the time, texting Izzy.

"Raphael likes my espresso" one text said.

"Oh. My. God!" was all she responded.

Alec tried to keep busy reading, but he occasionally watched Magnus and Raphael as they worked. Magnus looked completely at home, when he worked and Alec felt himself wishing he would see the same spark in the man once he got off work as well.

"He seems lonely," Alec texted his sister.

"Raphael?" she asked back with a disapproving smiley.

"Magnus."

"You're so in love with him!" she texted back. Alec didn't know what to say. He wasn't in love – not yet at least, but he did find the older man very attractive and extremely sexy with his dark brown hair, caramel skin and thin muscles… Alec received another text before he could answer her back. "Is he even gay?"

"I don't think so. He brought two girls home last night, but he passed out before they could do anything?"

"He's gay. Or at least bi."

"He was also drunk."

"Maybe he's confused?" she offered. Alec jumped, when a phone rang next to him. It had to be Raphael's phone. It said 'Ragnor' across the screen. What an odd name, he thought. Raphael came running to answer it. Magnus sighed and came over to talk to Alec.

"Are you awfully bored?" he looked apologetic.

"No, it's fine. I brought a book," Alec held up the book that he hadn't really been reading, it was a book about how to write a good book. It was silly really, but Alec wanted to be a writer. He had some pretty good ideas for a fantasy universe, but he'd never had the courage to really go for it. Magnus was just about to make a comment on the book, but they heard Raphael giggle just outside the room. Magnus frowned.

"I wonder who he's talking to. I never hear him giggle. Actually, he's been a bit weird lately," Magnus seemed to realize something as he listed Raphael's behavior. "Shit, maybe he's in love. I never thought he would be able to love someone, he always thinks everyone is completely ridiculous," Magnus added.

"Well, if that's the case you should probably thank someone called Ragnor for his behavior. That can't possibly be a nickname, right?" Alec said, and Magnus' expression dropped by the name. Without a word he walked soundlessly towards the door and, Alec couldn't believe it, _eavesdropped_ by the door. An expression of disgust spread across Magnus' face. Alec got to his feet and walked to Magnus, but he was too late, Raphael had already hung up and opened the door to find two people eavesdropping.

"Holy shit, you and Ragnor? My Ragnor?" Magnus exclaimed.

"He's not your Ragnor. What do you care?" Raphael looked bored.

"I know he's not… Raphael, you're just a kid, he's nearing forty," Magnus said more calmly. Alec tried to make himself invisible, while secretly admiring Magnus' sudden concern.

"I'm twenty. Haven't you seen my videos? I'm not a kid, I might have been when you met me, but I'm not anymore. You introduced us for God's sake."

"Raph, I'm sorry. I've just known Ragnor my whole life. It's just weird." This seemed to hurt Raphael more than he had intended. "I didn't mean it like that," he added hurriedly.

"Are we going to be adults about this or do I need to storm out and never come back?" Raphael crossed his arms over his bare chest.

"You don't need to storm out, I think we have everything we need anyway, so you can just walk out calmly," Magnus sounded low-spirited.

"Good," Raphael went to put his clothes back on.

"Raphael, he travels all the time. Are you sure it's such a good idea?" Magnus continued with his concern.

"We have great phone sex. Just leave it alone, I'm warning you Bane," he said and left.

Magnus ran a hand through his hair and it messed it up completely, because he had so many products in his hair.

"I'm not gonna leave it alone. Where's my phone?" he sighed, but Alec got to the phone first and kept it away from him.

"Why are you so upset?"

"Because my old friend is dating a kid, it's disgusting. He's always on about me dating the wrong people, so I'm allowed to…" he stopped himself, when Alec threw the phone out of sight. They heard it crash against the concrete floor. Alec's heart was racing – he'd just broken someone's phone! "What the hell?"

"Are you hearing yourself? Raphael is clearly not a kid. I think he can do whatever he wants. I don't know your old friend, but I'm sure that Raphael knows what he's doing. Even if I don't like him very much," Alec said, surprised with himself.

"Who asked you?"

"How do you feel when Ragnor comments on your dating life?" Alec asked, and it seemed that his message went through to Magnus. "I don't know if it's pure coincidence the past two days, or if you're always trying to control your friends like this, but maybe it's time someone was a bit bossy with you for a change."

"You keep parenting me, Alexander, and I swear to God…"

"What? What would you do? I barely know you, what would I care if you shut me out?" Although he knew he would care, much more than he wanted to admit to himself. "But you can't, because you still like having me around." Magnus tried to hide his smile, but it showed anyway.

"Fuck, I do like having you around. Lunch?" he asked.

"I'm starving," Alec grinned.

…

By the end of the day they both decided Alec might as well stay with Magnus again. Alec didn't like how expensive the hotels in New York were, so he would probably have slept in his van again. And Magnus claimed that he had started to enjoy espresso, which he simply couldn't make himself, because he was a spoiled brat, Alec thought to himself. Neither of them wanted to go out that night, though Magnus claimed it was a rare exhaustion he felt, because he always wanted to go out otherwise. They said their goodnights, and Alec settled on the couch. He found his phone and couldn't help the temptation – he hadn't really seen any of Raphael's videos, he'd only read about him and seen pictures and stills from the videos, so Alec thought maybe he could just watch a few minutes and see what the fuss was all about? He'd met Raphael, and though he was hot, his terrible personality made him significantly less attractive. He plugged in his headphones, but it didn't matter much, because the one he'd found was in Spanish. He decided to watch a few minutes anyway, and realized that when he acquired a different personality Raphael could be kind of hot. It wasn't one of those bad acting porn. Raphael was actually an actor. It was just about to get sexy, when…

"You filthy…"

Alec jumped and rolled out of the couch, looking up at an extremely amused Magnus. Alec could either continue being embarrassed, embrace the warm color he felt rise in his cheeks and crawl into a whole, which was what he wanted most. Or he could man up and be an adult about it, because there was really nothing embarrassing about an adult single man watching porn, was there? He decided on the latter and sat back up in the couch.

"I was curious," he began. Magnus sat down next to him.

"Alexander, sometimes a man gets these feelings…" Magnus teased and Alec threw a pillow at him.

"Shut up," he chuckled. "I was curious, because after meeting him today I honestly couldn't see what all the fuss was about. But he's a great… actor."

Magnus cracked a smile.

"Yeah, personality can be a real turnoff," he smirked. They sat in silence for a moment. "I really can't sleep at this hour," he sighed.

"We could watch a movie?" Alec offered. He didn't really want to watch a movie.

"Or we could just talk? I've been dragging you around the past thirty-six hours, but I don't know much about you."

"You know about my family?"

"Barely anything," Magnus eyed him. Eventually Alec began telling Magnus everything about his friends at home. He told him how Jace was his brother and his best friend, and he would walk through fire for him, which he had almost had to do once, because Jace was excellent at finding trouble. He told him how Izzy had a hard time loving herself, and so she tried to live through Alec instead. He knew she really was the one who had wanted to go on a road trip across the country. Luckily, she had fallen in love with the slightly younger Simon Lewis, who was a huge nerd and yet somewhat an improvement to her last few boyfriends. He told him about Clary and her talent with a pen and paper. He even had one of her drawings in his pocket at all time – it was a drawing of Alec and Max by the lake throwing rocks. He explained how Max was his endearing younger brother and the nerd of the family. He told Magnus how nearly every generation of the Lightwoods had a genius. In a previous generation it had been Christopher Lightwood, who had made some pretty significant inventions. "They all sound lovely," Magnus looked down at his own hands.

"What about you?"

"I already told you about my family," Magnus shrugged.

"Not much," Alec inquired.

"Well, I'm finally tired, so I better go back to bed. Great stories though," he said and got to his feet.

"Not fair. I just told you everything?" Alec stood up.

"Goodnight, Alec. I'll tell you tomorrow." And he disappeared behind the nearly transparent walls of his bedroom. Alec sat back down and sulked for a moment. He wasn't going to be able to sleep now. When he got up to get some water, he heard a sniffle. He popped his head into the bedroom and noticed Magnus was crying. Alec had never seen a grown man cry before, and it sent a terrible sadness through him.

"Magnus-" he stepped into the small room. Magnus wiped his face.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you, and I sure didn't mean for you to see me like this," he said and turned away from him. Alec just went to the other side of the bed, and made a quick decision to risk everything and climb into the bed. He risked getting thrown out, but he wanted nothing more than to comfort this man and tell him everything was fine. But how could he know if everything was fine? He barely knew Magnus. "You don't have to…"

"I don't know why, but I hate to see you sad," Alec looked into the swollen eyes. They really were almost yellow.

"It's because you're a good person," Magnus forced a smile.

"What's wrong?" Instead of answering, Magnus turned back over to the other side. Alec was just about to brace himself for getting kicked out, but then Magnus took his arm and folded it over him so Alec was now spooning Magnus.

"I just get so sad sometimes," Magnus whispered. Alec leaned closer to him and embraced him. He was so warm, and he smelled like shea butter and hair products.

"It's okay," he assured him.

…

They must have both fallen asleep pretty quickly, because Alec woke up feeling the weight of Magnus' head on his chest. He didn't want to move and wake him up. He had no idea if Magnus had work, or if he needed to be somewhere, but lying like this felt so peaceful and right. He looked down at Magnus to see if he was asleep, and all he could see was the back of his head.

"Stop staring at me," Magnus mumbled.

"How did you…?"

"You moved your head, I could feel it," he said and rolled away from him. Magnus looked up at Alec. "Let's try not to make a habit of that?"

"Okay," Alec tried not to look disappointed. "Espresso?"

"Yes, please," Magnus moaned, not really making it much easier for Alec.

Alec had never spooned someone all night. He was also pretty sure he had never slept so peacefully before either, despite having a grown man cry himself to sleep in his arms. Magnus seemed more broken than Alec had first assumed. Maybe it was depression? Alec had known a few people with depression in his life. He got out of bed and made them both a cup of espresso. He had no idea how to cook, or he would have probably made breakfast as well, but he decided he better not.

"Are you going to tell me what's wrong?" Alec wondered, when Magnus appeared at the kitchen island.

"Nope."

"Okay." He decided he shouldn't be bossy anymore and pressure him, because if it was depression, chances were he wouldn't tell a stranger like Alec about it anyway.

"Just like that?"

"Just like what?" Alec acted clueless.

"You're not gonna force it out of me?"

"Why would I want to do that?"

"Yesterday you ruined my phone?" Magnus changed his strategy.

"Yeah, I really hope you didn't have your calendar on that," Alec shrugged.

"It syncs with my iPad," Magnus kept a straight face.

"Are you going to make me pay for a new one?"

"Don't be ridiculous. You don't have that kind of money. You sleep in a van."

"Not last night," Alec smirked. Magnus suppressed a smile, and he had to look down into his tiny cup of espresso to compose himself. Alec felt a small victory.

"We should go to the club tonight. I need to get laid," Magnus got up and walked to the bathroom.

"You had a perfect chance the other night, but you passed out," Alec yelled after him.

"Don't remind me!"

Alec was starting to enjoy their small banter a bit too much, and he probably had to tone it down a bit, before he was completely screwed. A guy like Magnus would never settle for a guy like Alec. Alec wasn't even sure Magnus would settle for a guy.

When Magnus remerged from the bathroom after a quick shower, Alec couldn't help but stare. He tried to hide it, but he was also too busy suppressing the feelings that turned up inside him, while he watched a half-naked Magnus. Alec started when Magnus threw the used towel at him.

"Stop staring and take a cold shower," he grinned. Alec blushed, and Magnus' expression softened. "I promised you a story today."

"Don't you have work?" Alec smiled.

"I have this weekend off," Magnus said. "Clean towels are on the top shelf in the bathroom."

Alec hurried to clean up, but he was somewhat slowed by all the products in the shower. He hadn't brought his own soap from the van, and he tried to figure out which product to use for his hair and which for his body. He ended up using one for everything. When he went back to the kitchen in a clean set of clothes similar to his last outfit, Magnus had set up the island with a whole lot of breakfast. His eyes ran over the table and found pancakes, muffins, yoghurt, bread, jam, eggs and bacon. It was more like a brunch table.

"Did you make all that in ten minutes?" Alec looked at his watch. Maybe he had lost some time, while showering. Magnus' shower did have really good water pressure, and he had been kind of lost in thought.

"Would you believe me if I told you I magically made it appear?" Magnus asked.

"So you have an app for brunch delivery?" Alec grinned.

"Yes, I ordered while you made espresso," he shrugged. Alec went to sit down by one of the plates. It all looked so delicious, it was nothing like when Izzy made brunch. Usually, they had to make up an excuse for not eating Izzy's food. It was odd really, when she was so good at mixing drinks. Of course no pots and pans were involved in the making of cocktails. "You're dreaming?" Magnus said, breaking Alec's reverie.

"I was just thinking of the times my sister tried to cook. I might need to introduce her to the app you used," Alec said.

"I'll hook her up sometime," Magnus smirked. They ate in silence for a while. Alec hadn't realized how hungry he was, and with all the food on the table he didn't feel bad about stuffing his face with half of it. Magnus didn't eat much, he noticed.

"Not hungry?"

"I don't eat much for breakfast," the man shrugged.

"It's more like brunch time anyway?" Alec tried. He didn't want to be the kind of person who told Magnus that he would get too skinny. Magnus was lean, so he supposed he didn't have to worry too much. He had to work out, or he wouldn't look like he did. Alec had seen him shirtless after all. Magnus ignored him. "So only child, huh?" Alec changed the subject.

"Yeah, I guess I promised you a story. I might need some more coffee though, my eyes are still a bit puffy," he sighed and poured a cup for both of them. They moved to the couch and Magnus began to tell about his family. It was a short story due to his small family. He hadn't talked to his father in years, and he had no intention of ever doing so again. And his mother had killed herself twelve years ago. She had left him with barely anything, except from a brutal stepfather. But she had been smart enough to wait until Magnus was eighteen, and he didn't have to live with the stepfather. His stepfather had beaten him up a few times, but apparently it had been nothing compared to what he had done to Magnus' mother. "I guess she'd finally had enough." Magnus looked down into his coffee.

"So he just let you leave? Your stepfather I mean," Alec wondered.

"He didn't really care about me, if I hadn't left I'm sure he'd have kicked me out anyway. But I had to start from scratch. Luckily, I had amazing friends. Ragnor had always told me to come stay with him, but I couldn't leave my mom alone with my stepdad. Only when she gave up, I didn't have any reason to stay anymore and Ragnor was very welcoming. I didn't want to impose on his kindness, so I kept moving around between friends. I lived with Catarina for a while, but she prefers solitude, so I moved to live with Woolsey. He helped me create a career. He comes from an important family, but his parents died in a plane crash and he and…" Magnus looked down again, "his brother had to take over the business."

"What happened to his brother?" Alec wondered. Something must have happened, Magnus had a light in his eyes when he talked about his friends, but it dropped at the last mentioned.

"Ralf was transgender, he was born Ralphina. Ralf fell in love with Camille, who you've met, and unfortunately she was in the company of a very bad crowd, who didn't approve of his 'lifestyle'. Things got messy and he ended up getting himself killed. I met Camille shortly after, and Woolsey made sure she got away from the bad crowd," Magnus shrugged. "I will introduce you to Woolsey someday, maybe he can help you with your writer's dream," he added. Alec blinked. How did he know? "The book you were reading earlier. You want to be a writer?"

"Oh, I don't…" Alec began, and realized what Magnus was doing. "Way to change the subject. I'm glad you have good friends, but you haven't told me about your real dad? The one you think is the devil? Sounds harsh compared to your stepfather," he said.

"I don't know much about him, other than my mom was afraid of him. And not in the same way she was afraid of my stepdad. I have no interest in ever meeting him," Magnus set down his cup of coffee. He hadn't had time to drink all of it in between talking and the coffee had to be cold by now.

"Maybe he has changed?"

"I don't believe people can change that much. The way she described him, Patrick Bateman comes off as sort of nice guy next to my father," Magnus said firmly. "There, you know my life. Now I need a drink." Magnus got to his feet.

"It's barely noon?" Alec wondered.

"It's Saturday," Magnus said, as if that made up for something. Alec followed him to the kitchen and closed the cupboard that Magnus had just opened, before he could take down any booze. "I told you not to parent me, Lightwood."

"I'm not parenting you. I'm being your friend," Alec caught Magnus' eyes, and he looked surprised. "From what you've told me, friendship shouldn't be a new term for you."

"It isn't."

"Why won't you tell me what's bothering you?"

"What makes you think…"

"You're drinking every night, apparently also during the day on Saturdays. When you're not drinking, you're crying yourself to sleep," Alec interrupted him.

"You think because you've followed me around for three days that you know me?"

"And you're being defensive, when someone's trying to help you," Alec stated. It wasn't like Magnus hadn't received help before. Maybe that was his problem; he didn't want to receive help again. Perhaps he thought he owed this Woolsey something. "Maybe you don't want a new friend?"

Magnus seemed to be contemplating something. His jaw clenched and unclenched, while he thought for a moment. Then he turned his eyes back to Alec's, and something told him that Magnus changed his mind about his thoughts last minute, because he sighed and dropped his expression.

"I'm really fine. Can't we just have a good time? None of my other friends want to party with me."

Alec could imagine why.

"There are other ways to have fun than by partying," Alec pointed out.

"Like what?"

"Sometimes on Saturdays I watch whatever marathon there is on Discovery Channel?" Alec offered lamely.

"You are so boring." Alec had to come up with something better than that or he would end up drunk before lunch. Magnus was the local one, he should be better at knowing what to do on Saturdays – they were in New York for crying out loud. That gave Alec an idea.

"Sightseeing," he suggested.

"Sightseeing?" Magnus raised an eyebrow.

"Come on. You don't want the entire day to be about you, that's clear from you clutching on to the cupboard with alcohol," Alec looked up at Magnus' hand still on the cupboard that Alec had shut. "You can be my tour guide. Show me everything I need to see in New York?"

Magnus seemed to really consider this, but then…

"I have a better idea," he smirked.


	3. Chapter 3

**Pretty Woman**

"Magnus," Alec said, looking down at himself. "Makeover is not a better idea," he sighed. He was wearing a grey suit with black buttons, and he felt completely ridiculous. He had never owned a suit, and he didn't think he needed to get one now, especially not a grey one.

As soon as Magnus had gotten the idea of a makeover into his head, he'd called up a few of his female friends. First he'd tried Camille, but she had hung up as soon as he'd stated the emergency. Magnus didn't do the same mistake, when he'd called his other friend, Catarina. He'd made it sound like a real emergency and Alec had rolled his eyes, while trying hard not to interfere. Catarina had come storming into the café, where Magnus had told her to meet them, and of course as soon as she'd been informed about the so-called emergency, she had looked at him and said in a cold voice, 'Magnus, some people have real emergencies. At the hospital. Where I work,' and she'd walked out of the café, before anyone could convince her to stay. Now Alec was in a fitting room trying on expensive clothes, while Magnus waited patiently outside.

"It's a brilliant idea. And as a bonus I will tell you about the buildings as we move along between stores," Magnus said. "Also grey is not your color, we need a darker suit."

"While I do like the sound of a darker color, I would like the sound of a shirt even better?"

"Nice try. I know what you mean by shirt, but I don't think I know of a store in New York that sells flannel," Magnus grinned. The salesman eyed Alec. He'd looked at him when they came in, and Alec had felt like Julia Roberts – out of place and completely unwelcomed. They were in the high-end of the city; Alec had noticed that much from the expensive cars and the people walking past them on the street wearing designer clothes. Magnus noticed Alec was uncomfortable and they went to another store. On the way Magnus kept pointing out buildings Alec had never heard of before and didn't think they were really famous buildings, more like famous warehouses. He recognized Versace and Gucci, but they went into Barneys instead. Magnus walked determinedly to one end of the department store and Alec kept up, so he wouldn't get lost. It seemed he had something very specific in mind, as he quickly picked out a pair of pants and a sport coat.

"Lanvin. Biker style trousers and a sportcoat," Magnus said. The pants weren't what Alec would have called biker style, but looking at the label inside he read that Magnus was right. "Don't look at me like that. I do fashion for a living. I wanted to see you in a real suit first, but after that I figured you needed to ease into it slowly. This is me compromising. See, I can play with others," Magnus said and turned towards the fitting room.

"Compromising? This is nearly as expensive as the other suit I tried on. I can't afford this side of town. Let's find Forever 21 or something," Alec sighed, but Magnus didn't listen, he just kept walking towards the fitting room.

"I want to see it on you."

"Why?" Alec frowned.

"Just try it on. Please?"

"No. I'm not Pretty Woman, I'm not gonna be your beard or whatever this weird whim of yours is," Alec crossed his arms. Magnus suppressed a laugh.

"I don't think that's quite what a beard means, but all right. I wanted to do a photoshoot with you," Magnus said. Alec thought he might have heard him wrong, but when he was certain he hadn't, he turned around and walked away from Magnus. He wasn't sure he could even find his way out of Barneys, but he didn't get very far anyway, before Magnus caught his arm. "Don't be childish. You've made me do something that took me out of my comfort zone, now it's time to return the favor."

The man had a point, Alec thought cursing himself for agreeing to it. He took the clothes from Magnus' hand.

"Fine."

The clothes weren't that bad. But it really was too expensive.

"Don't you usually have clothes lying around from old shoots? Can't I just borrow that?"

"And have you miss your chance of playing Pretty Woman? Not a chance. I'm buying."

"I should have never made that reference," Alec sighed.

Magnus had ended up buying a sweater for Alec as well, while Alec changed back into his own clothes. He couldn't figure out why Magnus wanted to spend that kind of money on a stranger.

…

They were the only ones at the studio today as well, and Magnus decided to do the shoot in the basement as his gear had already been set up there from yesterday.

"I'm honestly not going to be very good at this," Alec said.

"Maybe you'll be surprised," Magnus shrugged. Alec looked around and there was no place to change into his new clothes. He remembered that Raphael had just changed his clothes right in the middle of the room, but a porn star was used to nudity. "Just change into the new clothes. It'll be fine."

Alec knew it was ridiculous to feel self-conscious changing his clothes in front of another man, because he knew that he probably wouldn't feel the same if it had been any other man. He put on the clothes quickly, while Magnus was adjusting his camera. Once he had the clothes on, Magnus insisted on doing his hair. Alec ended up feeling a bit more confident once he was ready to do the shoot. But the confidence quickly went down. Posing was difficult, and it felt unnatural and by the look on Magnus' face, he could tell he was doing a poor job.

"I told you it would be horrible," Alec sighed self-consciously. He did not like to be in the spotlight, especially not this literally.

"We just need you to feel natural," Magnus said.

"Nothing about this feels natural."

"Did you bring a book?" Magnus wondered. Alec raised his eyebrows.

"You want me to read a book? Won't that look… pretentious?"

"Just get it," Magnus sighed. He seemed to get a bit impatient, but his amusement still showed or Alec would have never continued the shoot. He went to get his book and held it in his hand. "What's it about?"

"I haven't really read it yet," Alec said and looked at the back of the cover. He read it out loud. It was about creating a fantasy world without making any pitfalls. Alec noticed Magnus was taking pictures while he was explaining, but he tried not to think about it. He put the book down, when he was done explaining the back of the cover.

"Have you created a world yet?" Magnus asked, looking over his camera. Alec felt his cheeks blush. "Don't tell me it's something dirty?"

"It's not. It's more silly," Alec said.

"Tell me," Magnus said with a soft expression. Alec really did like work-Magnus much better. There was really nothing more attractive than someone passionate about what they did, whether it was a hobby or a career. Alec realized that he was talking about his own passion, and finally Magnus' request made sense.

"I've only created the world so far. But I was thinking it should be a parallel world to our own, in which there are demons and then there are demon hunters hunting the demons, so that regular people can live in peace," Alec told.

"That sounds cool. Sort of like Supernatural?"

"Yeah, but the demon hunters aren't people, they are part angel. Regular people are called mundanes, and they can't see demons unless they have the sight."

"Sounds interesting. What about characters?"

"I'm not sure yet. But I think I'll let myself get inspired by my sister, my brothers and my friends. They could all be demon hunters."

"Badass. I have a suggestion," Magnus said, waiting for Alec to look at him before continuing. "What if the demon hunters were called Shadowhunters? If regular people can't see demons, wouldn't that be because they live in the shadow? Metaphorically?"

"That's a great idea," Alec had to smile. "Maybe I should make a character for you?" He absentmindedly bit his lower lip, but quit it as soon as he realized.

"Yeah? Would I be a badass Shadowhunter?"

"No, I think you should be a Downworlder," Alec smirked.

"What's a Downworlder?" Magnus hadn't snapped a picture the past few minutes.

"You're not taking any pictures?"

"Oh, right." He held up his camera again, and Alec continued. He walked around the small space in the light.

"Downworlders are what they call vampires, werewolves, warlocks etcetera."

"I would probably make a good sparkling vampire," Magnus smiled behind his camera.

"My vampires don't sparkle," Alec snorted. "But a warlock might. A warlock is half demon and half human."

"That doesn't sound good?"

"Didn't you say that your father was practically the devil himself?" Alec smirked.

"That's a good point. But wouldn't that make me the bad guy?"

"Not necessarily. I believe more in the cultural circumstances of the upbringing rather than genetics." Alec pictured it all in his head now. Of course he would never make himself the main character, but he imagined his character falling in love with the immortal and fashionable warlock, who had issues about sharing his past. Perhaps it sounded more like a fanfiction of his life, had it been an interesting life.

Shortly after telling Magnus all about his plans with the novel so far, Magnus showed the pictures that had gone directly onto his computer. Some of them had turned out all right, and Alec had to admit that the light in the room gave a pretty good effect, completely different from the light at home in front of the mirror.

"These are great. You really have the look going for you, with your blue eyes, black hair and great cheekbones," Magnus said, absorbed by his own work. Alec wished he had sounded flirtier, and less professional telling him, but it did boost his confidence.

"You sound like Izzy," Alec rolled his eyes.

"I mean it too. You shouldn't be so hard on yourself. You can probably pull anything off."

"Then why couldn't I just wear my own clothes?" Alec challenged.

"It's not that you're not pulling off the sweatshirt and jeans look, it's just that when you look like you do, you should embrace it and not try to hide it," Magnus explained.

"You're being awfully nice. What's the catch?"

"We're going for dinner and then alcohol," the other man grinned.

"I kind of need a drink anyway," Alec shrugged.

"Welcome to my world."

…

Magnus had made reservations at a restaurant, while they went home so he could change his clothes. Alec had been told to keep his new clothes on, and Magnus promised he had a great evening planned out. Alec was going to see the best side of the New York nightlife, or so he promised. And it wasn't going to be anything like the other night.

Alec had never been to a restaurant where you needed to make reservations first. It felt fancy and he was glad he'd gotten a new outfit after all.

"This is really glamorous," Alec said, looking at the menu. He had no idea what any of it was.

"You still feel like Pretty Woman? Do I need to tell you which fork to use first?"

"No, Julia Roberts already taught me that," Alec winked, and Magnus laughed.

"Do I need to order for you then?"

"Would you?" Alec asked, hoping Magnus hadn't been joking. He probably had been joking, because his expression softened, before he answered.

"Sure. Steak?" Alec nodded. After Magnus had ordered their food and wine, Alec had to clear the air.

"I really had a good time today, despite leaving my comfort zone. I think you're really good at your job," Alec said. Everything got serious suddenly.

"You weren't a terrible client. Now Raphael on the other hand…" Magnus grinned. "I'm glad you had a good time. I haven't spent a day off with such a good friend in a while now. I can't believe we've just met."

"Yeah. I never thought I would become good friends with anyone in just two days," Alec looked down, adjusting the utensils although they didn't need adjustment. He felt self-conscious suddenly. He really enjoyed this man's company and he was beginning to fear that it would soon have an end. Magnus wouldn't be able to have him follow him around forever. And Alec wouldn't want to just follow him around forever either. He realized he wanted more, and maybe that was a sign that he had to move on to a new place soon, before it would be too heartbreaking for him.

"Fifty-four hours," Magnus said.

"What?"

"We've known each other for fifty-four hours," he shrugged. Magnus had counted the hours. Was that a good sign or a bad sign?

"I need to use the restroom," Alec stood up, realizing how ridiculous it was, because once again he came off as Pretty Woman. "I'll be right back," he added. In the restroom he pulled out his phone and called Izzy.

"Hello?" Izzy chuckled.

"Izzy, I need your advice," Alec said in a hurried voice.

"Stop it Simon! It's Alec," she said in the distance, "I'm sorry Alec. What were you saying?"

"I think I'm screwed." Alec looked up at the ceiling. It wasn't really a ceiling; it was a mirror. It seemed inappropriate for a restaurant, and he looked down again.

"Oh dear. Is he straight?"

"I don't know."

"You haven't found out yet?" she exclaimed.

"No. And today he bought me new clothes, he took pictures of me in his studio and now we're at a really fancy restaurant and I have no idea what I'm doing!" Alec thought he might be having a panic attack.

"Gosh, he sounds lovely. And completely gay," Izzy said. "But Alec, just relax and see how it goes. I'm sure someone like Magnus would take the first move if you showed just a tiny bit of encouragement. And if not, then you have to act if he shows you that kind of interest, okay?" It sounded so easy coming from her. She was used to getting boys to do everything for her. That's why he had needed to call her in the first place. "Now don't keep him waiting," she told him.

"Right. Thanks, Izzy. Love you," he said and tried to calm down, before going back to his seat. Dinner had been served while he was in the restroom and it smelled delicious. He downed half a glass of wine first and then dug in to the steak. Dinner went smoothly, and they even decided on dessert. They couldn't decide which one to get, so they ordered two different kinds of cake and switched when they'd tried half of one. As the evening went on, and more wine went down, Alec felt fonder and fonder of Magnus by every minute. But despite the look in Magnus' eyes when he looked at Alec, and despite the laugh he rewarded Alec's jokes with, he still wasn't sure of how Magnus' felt. Alec had gotten the feeling that Magnus was a loner. He had one-night stands, casual sex and nothing was ever serious with him.

After dinner and two bottles of wine, Magnus took him to a club. Alec had tried to protest, but Magnus had assured him he wouldn't abandon him this time, and he wouldn't try to force any girl on him either. Alec quickly noticed that it would be difficult to find any woman to force on him in this specific club, as it was all men. The closest he would get to a woman was a drag queen.

"Come on," Magnus said and walked towards the bar, before Alec could object. Alec eyed him, as they settled by the bar. "You said you were curious," Magnus shrugged.

"I didn't mean…" Alec began, but he ended the sentence with a sigh, knowing that it wouldn't matter what he said. He couldn't really deny it. But he also wasn't just curious, in fact, he was very certain about his sexuality. He was a twenty-one-year-old virgin, because back home he didn't know any places like this to meet guys, and he had always kept his distance from girls. He had never had the desire to experiment. He had always known what he wanted in life, and what he wanted was something real. But looking at Magnus in this scenery, he began to re-evaluate his desires. If he had met someone as gorgeous as Magnus undeniably was on a night like this, he wasn't sure he would have hesitated if he had come on to him. But he knew Magnus now. And he could never have a one-night stand with someone he knew. He was certain that because of his feelings, he couldn't have anything casual with him either. He was doomed. So he ordered a whiskey and Magnus looked impressed when he downed it without as much as a wince.

"You drink whiskey on the rocks, but you can't drink a daiquiri without twisting your face until it's unrecognizable?"

"Izzy has a pub. She likes to keep it old fashioned," he shrugged. Magnus looked impressed.

"I might have underestimated you," he said.

While Magnus kept his promise of not imposing any girls on him, he did drag Alec to a table full of very feminine guys. They weren't exactly unattractive, but they weren't exactly Alec's type either. He wasn't sure what his type was, except the annoying voice in the back of his head told him he knew exactly what his type was. He glanced involuntarily at Magnus once in a while. Magnus had his arms around him in a brotherly way, and Alec didn't make anything of it, but one of the guys thought the two of them were the cutest couple he'd ever seen.

"I love mixed race couples. You're the perfect combination of ivory and caramel," the boy said dreamily. Alec wrinkled his forehead and objected.

"We're not a couple."

"This one is single. Can you believe it?" Magnus said.

"Unbelievable!" the boy agreed. "There's no way you're not a couple."


	4. Chapter 4

**The Comfort Zone**

"Why would he not believe us when we say we weren't a couple? I mean, don't people usually lie about being a couple to get people to back off and not the other way around?" Magnus sniggered, as they entered his loft. The young guy from the club had been flirting heavily with both of them.

"I haven't been away from the countryside for long, but I get the impression that a lot of New York gay couples have very open relationships, and even at times find the idea of going for a couple intriguing. Not that I want to generalize the gay population of NY, I'm just saying, I've heard those people are out there," Alec shrugged, having trouble kicking his shoes off. They had had a lot of drinks. It had been a long time since he'd had this much fun on a night out. Mainly because back home, Jace wasn't really much of a partier, he only pretended like he was and there weren't really that many other young people. Well, Clary was there, but she had never really been a partygoer. Max was still too young to drink. Simon never went out, except on band nights. There was really only his sister, who wanted to have drinks with him. Her love for vintage alcoholic beverages was probably also the reason why she'd taken over the local pub, when the old man who'd owned it was put in a home. Alec had never imagined she would go local. He had always dreamed of something bigger for her, because she had the potential more than anyone else he knew to get out of that shithole of a town.

"You're reminiscing," Magnus noted with half a smile.

"Sorry."

"It doesn't matter. I think it's endearing," he threw himself down on the couch in the middle of his big one room loft. Alec walked around the couch and sat on the chair opposite Magnus. Magnus was grinning, the way he had noticed he did after a few drinks. "'There is no way you're not a couple'" Magnus imitated the guy from earlier, whose wrists were very loose and whose voice was high-pitched. He had been on the edge of acquiring the label 'fairy', which was an expression that Alec despised, but it was also the only way he could describe this guy with bleached hair and glitter eye shadow.

"It's not nice to make fun of people. Even if he was being completely ridiculous," Alec said calmly.

"Not completely ridiculous though," Magnus shrugged. "I mean we would make one hell of a good-looking couple." Magnus bit his lower lip as he fixed his eyes on Alec. Alec's heart skipped a beat and he swallowed hard. Magnus sat up and leaned over him, looking down on him.

"What are you…?" Alec whispered, but was cut short from Magnus' lips crushing down on his own. Alec felt the blood rushing through his veins, his pulse racing so fast he felt a ringing in his ears. Why was he doing this? They were both drunk, and it wasn't the way Alec had wanted it, but because of it he was also not able to help himself from grabbing at Magnus' shirt and dragging him down on him in the chair. Out of the three days they had spent together, Alec had gotten the impression that Magnus had had countless girls, and Magnus himself had seemed unable to keep track of how many he'd been with. The thought made him pause for a while. It didn't matter that he was promiscuous. Alec would be fine with that if he thought Magnus could leave it in his past. Magnus was cupping his face with one hand and holding himself up with the other, his legs straddling Alec.

"What's wrong?"

"Magnus, I…"

"I thought you wanted this?" Magnus wondered. Alec wanted nothing more at the moment. He wanted Magnus now just as much as he had when they first met, or even more so now. And he realized he was an open book about it, especially to Magnus. But the other guy had made an incredible job at hiding that he knew what the looks from Alec meant, or hiding that he could feel his attraction every hour of the night.

"Only if you want it?" Alec whispered, and nearly regretted questioning his friend's intentions, when Magnus let go of him and stood up.

"Alec, you're really incredibly good-looking, I've been staring at your ass all day, and I'm not…"

"You're not gay?" Alec figured as much from the amount of women that had surrounded him the first night, and that's why he would never have initiated this.

"I'm not one to follow the black and white hypothesis of sexuality. You know it's more complex than that. You're an attractive guy, and I am just going with the flow here. You're not the first guy I'll have been with," Magnus said.

"Well, you'll be the first guy for me," Alec shrugged, feeling the insecurity rise. He hadn't really thought much of how his first time would be, but he hadn't expected himself to start analyzing it before it had even happened.

"I'm your first guy? So you're straight?" Magnus asked casually to show he wasn't freaked out about possibly being his first.

"No, I…" Alec sighed from lack of words. They just came from a gay bar, because Magnus had thought it would be an interesting twist to the usual nights out. He must have drawn to the inevitable conclusion, when Alec had known who Raphael was.

"I really thought you were gay," Magnus kept joking. Alec stood up in front of him, now that he was sure Magnus knew he hadn't been with any girl either, and that much was clear from his smirk. Magnus was only an inch or two taller than Alec, which rarely happened, but he found it appealing.

"Shut up," Alec said and started kissing him again this time without hesitation, this time without thinking about anything else, this time without restraint. Magnus shoved him down on the couch and started undressing both of them. Magnus was very forceful at first, nearly ripping the clothes off and Alec couldn't care less. He felt the blood run fast in his veins as he tried to slow things down. It didn't work, and Magnus didn't slow down. Something told Alec that the guy might be a sex addict, but he wasn't sure if he cared. They would just have to be careful. But as soon as they were both naked on the couch, Magnus finally slowed down, he slowed his breathing and the moves of his fingers as he ran them down Alec's torso. For a split second he seemed mesmerized by the muscles, and Alec didn't really mind, though he might have blushed as an effect of being studied. But before he could make a comment about it, Magnus' lips crushed down on his and he pressed his tongue against Alec's teeth. He could feel Magnus' excitement grow as his erection rubbed against his own. Alec moaned against Magnus' mouth, and the other guy took hold of both his wrists and held them in place over his head. "What are you doing?" Alec asked nervously.

"You're too squirmy," Magnus smirked. "I'm not usually on this end when with a guy, so I need you somewhat still." He began trailing kisses down Alec's body, and Alec gasped when he didn't even make a pause before moving further down past his navel. Being still was impossibility after Magnus closed his mouth around Alec. He jerked his hips up to welcome the sensation and the feeling of being inside Magnus' mouth. The other man hummed and it seemed to resonate through Alec. Alec stuttered out moans as he neared climax and Magnus didn't even flinch as he swallowed. Alec was overwhelmed by the emotions running through him, and overwhelmed by how natural it came to Magnus, even though he claimed to usually be the one receiving the blowjobs. "Do you by any chance have lube?" he wondered bluntly.

"No."

"We'll have to get creative then, I'm all out," he said and spit on his fingers.

"Magnus wait," Alec sat up in the couch. Magnus narrowed his eyes at him. "This is all very overwhelming for me. I know it comes easy to you, but it doesn't to me. I realize that some people shut certain feelings out, because they are too overwhelming, but I won't do that. I want something real," he explained. Magnus leaned back with a sigh and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be. You're allowed to say stop whenever you feel like it," Magnus said, he stood up and put his clothes on. Alec felt bad suddenly for having rejected him halfway through. Magnus never got to satisfy himself. Apparently the guilt was visible to Magnus, because he sat down next to Alec. "Don't feel guilty. I sort of began to understand why the guys I've been with didn't care if I didn't do the same back." Alec looked at the other guy inquiringly. "It's quite satisfying to see someone dissolve under your touch," Magnus explained and bit his lower lip. Alec let out a controlled breath, as he composed himself. Magnus was perfect. He was the perfect guy, if only he was into monogamy. "I think we should call it a night," Magnus said, and kissed Alec's forehead.

"Goodnight." Alec let himself fall down on the couch, and before he could have another panic attack or overanalyze the situation, exhaustion took over and he fell asleep.

…

"Wakey wakey, eggs and bakey," Magnus held a cup of coffee over Alec's head. He slowly rose to the delicious smell.

"Why are you so energetic?" Alec tried to clear his eyes, ignoring the headache. He took the cup of coffee and it did help a bit.

"Maybe sperm is the secret cure for hangover?" Magnus mused, and Alec almost choked on his coffee. It seemed to give Magnus a great deal of amusement. "Yeah, I thought you would choke on that." Alec studied the man's face.

"Are you high?"

"No, I was kidding. But you need to get up soon. I was thinking about yesterday," Magnus stood up and walked to the kitchen island. Alec got to his feet, hopeful that Magnus might have changed his mind, and the reason for his sudden vibrancy was that he had realized he wanted to be with Alec as well. "And I really think your idea for a novel is brilliant, so I talked to my friend Woolsey this morning, the one who hooked me up with my job. He wants to meet us today," Magnus smiled. Alec had to take this in for a moment. He needed to stop getting his hopes up about this guy. He took a deep breath, before answering.

"I've really never met anyone quite like you," he sighed. This was just another one of his silly whims.

"Does that mean 'thank you Magnus you're the best'?"

"No!" Alec exclaimed. "It means, 'you must be out of your mind to think I would be ready for that Magnus'." This answer appeared to surprise Magnus.

"What?"

"Look. It's part of your nature to just go with the flow and see where it takes you. I went on this trip to do the same thing, because I needed to let loose a little. But the story is my private thing. It's my little hobby, and it's not something I go around sharing with anybody," Alec explained.

"Woolsey isn't anybody, he might have some important and influential inputs for you to take with you. That's what he did for me. It's just a casual meeting. I bet he'll just serve tea and tell you anecdotes of authors he knows," Magnus said. "Maybe give you a few phone numbers."

"No. I don't want to do that." Alec put down the coffee cup on the table and went to put on his clothes. The frustration growing inside of him was beginning to feel like a problem. He couldn't stay with Magnus any longer. He was going mad just from being around him, and now Magnus was once again planning on taking him outside of his comfort zone. He wasn't going to do it. He put his things into his small backpack and it seemed that Magnus finally realized what was happening.

"Alec?" Magnus sounded sad and heartbroken. Alec knew he'd only called his friend because he wanted to do something for Alec. He probably thought it would make up for his own unavailability. "Please don't leave?"

Alec felt a sickness in his stomach, and he knew it wasn't the hangover. He felt nervous and anxious about leaving, because he was starting to form a lot of feelings for this man. And it was those feelings that made him feel almost feverish inside. He didn't want them and the only way to get rid of that feeling was by leaving.

"I'm sorry. I have to move on. I have to go home," Alec said without looking at Magnus. He went for the front door, but Magnus was quick and he ended up blocking the door.

"No, I won't accept that. I can't let you leave while you're upset. I'll call it off with Woolsey. I won't ever bring it up again?" Magnus actually looked scared. Alec's expression softened. Clearly the guy had some abandonment issues.

"It's not just that," Alec ran a hand through his hair and threw his backpack on the floor. He knew they had to talk about it before he left. It wouldn't be fair to any of them if they didn't talk. "We ruined it last night. We shouldn't have…"

"I don't regret last night," Magnus shrugged.

"Well, I do. It's going to make things awkward. I feel awkward," Alec admitted. Magnus kept staring at him without a word. "You can say something now."

"I don't understand. It was my first time being on the giving end of a blowjob, if you want I can get better. We can practice?" Magnus said. Alec couldn't help it; he began laughing. "I imagine you have a lovely laugh, but I can't help but feel like you're mocking me?"

"You don't get it," Alec walked back into the middle of the room. "I don't want a casual relationship. Especially not with someone I could actually fall madly in love with." As soon as he heard himself saying the words out loud, he hit himself on the forehead. Why had he needed to emphasize it by saying 'madly'? Why had he needed to say anything at all? Magnus was speechless. "Shit. Look, I need to get out of this apartment and I need to be alone," Alec said. Magnus let him reach the door this time.

"Please leave your car keys here, so I know you won't run off?" Magnus pleaded. Alec sighed, and handed over his keys, before walking down into the streets and feeling the dirty city air.

He suddenly didn't like walking the city alone. He needed Magnus' commentary in the background to keep him company. He needed Magnus' voice to tell him about the fashion designers, and the best cafés to visit or the best place to order cocktails. His heart was pounding and he couldn't calm it down. He couldn't stop thinking about Magnus' lips on his own. He couldn't stop thinking about Magnus naked on top of him. He realized he was already falling madly in love. He pulled out his phone, but this time he didn't feel like calling his sister. She would encourage him to stay, because she too was a big fan of Magnus. He needed an unbiased opinion.

"Yo Alec," Jace answered.

"Jace," Alec began and noticed he was crying. His voice cracked.

"Hey, what's the matter?" Jace sounded concerned. Alec saw the park across the street and headed in the direction, going for a quieter place.

"I just… erhm," he cleared his throat.

"Did you go out last night?"

"Yeah, I'm a bit hungover, but that's not why I called," he admitted.

"What's up?"

"Izzy has probably told you that I'm still in New York?"

"Yeah. I haven't heard from you in four days, man. Are you getting laid?" Jace asked. He sounded casual, but Alec still wished he wouldn't be so straightforward about it.

"No. Well… I'm a mess," he said. And suddenly he was spilling everything to Jace, because Jace knew better than anyone what it was like to be in love with someone unavailable. Sure, he had been the unattainable type himself, but everything had changed when he met Clary. She was in a relationship with her childhood best friend, and she denied her feelings for Jace for a long time, because loving Jace would mean she had to lose her best friend. But eventually she couldn't deny it anymore and she had to break Simon's heart. Luckily, short after their break Clary had introduced him to Izzy and everything seemed to fall into place. It was almost as if it had been meant to end this way, despite the heartache under way to that happy ending. He should probably let his novel be inspired by his friends' lives. Their lives already sounded like fantasy love stories. If anything, Alec's friends' stories had made him quite the romantic and gotten his hopes up for his own life.

"It sounds like you got it pretty bad," Jace said apologetically. "It sounds a lot like how I felt about Clary, when we first met."

"So what should I do? You got your happy ending?"

"Yeah, because no matter what I got thrown at me I didn't back down. I was selfish and I felt like hell. Of course it was all worth it. But I think guys are different, especially if he's used to dating girls. Maybe you should agree to a casual relationship, he'll be bound to fall in love with you eventually, because guess what?"

"What?"

"You're kind of easy to love," Jace said. "Did he really offer to practice on his blowjobs?"

"Yeah," Alec covered his eyes.

"Sounds like he's already well on his way to falling for you, if he's that desperate to make you stay."

"Thanks," Alec retorted.

"I didn't mean it like that," Jace sighed. "You will feel shitty about it if the feelings are not returned though. So there is a risk."

"Yeah, I know," Alec sighed.

"And Alec, people have all kinds of reasons to why they won't allow themselves to fall in love. Maybe he has his reasons," Jace added.

"Yeah, I just wish he would tell me."

"You've known the guy for three days, give him a break," Jace chuckled.

"You got a point. Thanks man," Alec said and they ended the conversation. Alec sat in the park for a while, thinking over everything Jace had said. He was right. Something had to be bothering Magnus. Something had bothered Jace when he first met Clary as well, and only Clary had been able to get him out of that misery. Alec wasn't the only one Magnus kept at a distance. He seemed to keep everyone at arm's length, both with his one-night stands and, from what Alec understood, with his friends as well. Alec decided he would risk his own heart and stay. He wasn't bound to anything. He didn't have a job or an apartment at home. He'd slept on Izzy's couch for months, when she'd told him to go out and live a little. Only when he'd met Magnus had he found out what it was like to live. It was a scary feeling, but it had to pay off in the end somehow. But he also wasn't going to start by Jace's advice about the casual relationship. If he needed Magnus to trust him, he wanted it to be on friendly terms and not have the interference of sex; at least not at first.

Back in Magnus' loft, Magnus appeared to be waiting. He was sitting on his couch, staring at the black TV set on standby. He looked up as Alec entered, but he didn't say anything.

"I might have overreacted," Alec began. Magnus looked relieved. "I'm not saying I want to talk to Woolsey about my novel, but I'm saying that I would love to meet your friend."

"I already called him and told him your reaction, and he reminded me that I always do this. He told me I should convince you to go have tea with him anyway," Magnus stood up and walked over to him.

"Consider me convinced," Alec shrugged.

"So you're staying?" Magnus asked and took a step closer.

"For now." Once again relief ran over Magnus' expression. He pulled Alec in for a hug and kissed the top of his head. "Small request though – you need to stop doing these lovely gestures, and you need to ignore that I just called you lovely," Alec added.

"Of course," Magnus chuckled.

…

On the way to Woolsey's apartment, Magnus explained that Woolsey basically did charity for a living. He had apparently founded an organization helping transgender kids in New York, as an honour to his brother. The organization did everything from raising awareness, to helping homeless kids and raising money for surgery. He sounded like quite a saint, but Magnus explained that after what happened to his brother he thought it was the best way to honour his memory, and also because the Scott family was already a wealthy family. Woolsey had inherited everything from all of his family, as he was one of the few left.

Before they reached the building where Woolsey lived, Magnus had somehow convinced Alec that he would at least talk about his writer's dream; just a casual talk like he had the day before at the photoshoot.

Woolsey opened the door himself, and the man looked just as fashionable as Magnus, but instead he had blonde hair and a different kind of confidence about him. For a moment Woolsey looked taken aback by seeing Alec there, and Alec couldn't shake the odd feeling that rose with the look he received from the man, but then he relaxed his shoulders and spoke.

"Whatever this is, I _have_ to be a part of it, we'll make it a threesome," Woolsey said with quite an accent, while eyeing Alec. Alec blushed and Magnus looked away. "Oh, bad topic, huh?"

"Woolsey, this is Alec Lightwood. Alec, _this_ is Woolsey. He is very straightforward and has no filter, apparently," Magnus gave him a warning look, and Woolsey held his hands up in surrender.

"I only apply filter on Instagram. It's nice to meet you Lightwood," he said politely.

"Yeah, you too. I've heard a lot about you," Alec said.

"Not all bad, I hope?"

"On the contrary."

"Magnus, have you been telling lies about me to this darling boy?" Woolsey looked at his friend. They seemed to share some kind of bond, and Alec couldn't help but think that maybe Woolsey was one of the guys Magnus had thought of, when he told him he'd been with men before. The man couldn't be much older than Magnus.

"Maybe a few, for encouragement," Magnus shrugged.

"Encouragement?" Woolsey's eyebrows went up into his hairline. "So you _are_ here for a three-way?" Woolsey led them into a huge living room. It was sort of Victorian in decoration, the man had a lot of things, but it didn't look messy.

"Alec wants to be a writer, and I think he has a really solid story, he just needs to pen it all down."

"Memoir?" Woolsey measured Alec.

"Of course not, he's not Justin Bieber," Magnus rolled his eyes. "Fantasy. It's brilliant."

Woolsey seemed interested and they all sat down to talk about Alec's imaginary world. At first Alec felt awkward, but much like Magnus, Woolsey was easy to talk to and he gave honest comments while Alec talked.

"It sounds really interesting, but you'll need to have a written draft. If you're just as good a writer as you are a storyteller, I could get you in touch with an editor who does fantasy," Woolsey said.

"I'm only in the brainstorming phase. Magnus sort of caught me off guard," Alec explained.

"Of course he did," Woolsey shot Magnus a disapproving look. "Well, enough of the serious talk. Let's have tea."

They talked a bit more relaxed after that, while having tea and biscuits. The Scott family was originally from England and they enjoyed a cup of afternoon tea. Magnus' phone rang, while they were eating biscuits and he went to take the call in another room. It gave Woolsey the chance to have an honest talk with Alec apparently. He leaned closer.

"Magnus is a very dear friend, and he has a few demons, but he's a good person deep down," Woolsey said.

"I know he is. I can see that part of him," Alec gave him half a smile.

"I can see you care about him, just be careful not to break his heart."

"I don't think I understand?"

"I know it doesn't show much, but he does wear his heart on his sleeve," Woolsey leaned back again. Magnus came back into the room and the conversation ended at that.

Alec kept repeating the conversation in his head for the rest of the day. Woolsey had wanted to say more, but he also didn't want Magnus to know he was talking about him.

"So did you like Woolsey?" Magnus inquired, when they left the man's penthouse.

"He had some very interesting points about my novel. I think I'll give it a real shot," Alec said, feeling a bit shy. "Either he really liked it or he was pretending to like it because of you," he added, looking up at Magnus. He was hoping to get some insight into whether Magnus and Woolsey had once had a thing together.

"He never pretends. He's always very straightforward about these things, of course only if they don't hurt anyone. But he would tell you if he thought it wouldn't work. He's an optimist though," Magnus smiled down at Alec, as he talked about his friend.

"He seems like a good friend," Alec said.

"He is. I owe him everything. If it weren't for him I would probably lie dead in the gutter somewhere," Magnus said a bit dramatically.


	5. Chapter 5

**The Chick Lit Incident**

"Are you sure you'll be fine back here?" Magnus looked at Alec. He was sprawled perfectly and comfortably across the couch with a laptop in his lap.

"I'll be fine. I write better when I'm alone anyway," Alec assured him.

Magnus had to go to work, because it was Monday. Alec had declined the offer of spending the day in Magnus' office, because he knew he wouldn't be able to concentrate. Of course, he didn't tell Magnus why he wouldn't be able to concentrate. He had promised himself that he would stop confessing his feelings to Magnus for a while.

"Okay. But you call me if there's anything, anything at all," Magnus said and almost absentmindedly reached down to kiss Alec on the top of his head. Shocked by himself he stopped for a moment, "I don't know why I just did that. Sorry," he said and left immediately.

The gesture didn't exactly help. For the first hour and a half he was thinking about possible explanations for Magnus' sweet kiss on his head. He came up with few reasons. One of the reasons included that Magnus now thought of Alec as his small pet. Another reason could be that he thought of Alec as a little brother he needed to take care of, or maybe deep down Magnus did have feelings for him as well. Alec eventually stopped overanalyzing it and began creating his characters.

…

Just after lunch the doorbell sounded and Alec jumped. It sounded again, before he could get to the buzzer and buzz whomever it was into the building. Perhaps he should have asked who it was first, but he wasn't sure how to use the phone on the wall. He waited by the door and not long after, Woolsey appeared on the stairs.

"Woolsey? Magnus is at work?" Alec said.

"I know. I thought we could have a little chat without Magnus," Woolsey said.

Alec made both of them tea. Woolsey didn't drink coffee. Alec had no clue why the man wanted to see him, unless he wanted to come and tell Alec in private that he didn't think his ideas would stand a chance.

"Is it about the novel?" Alec wondered, when he sat down next to Woolsey on the couch.

"No, I don't suppose you've finished it already?" Woolsey eyed him.

"No, I just… I don't know why else you would want to talk to me?"

"Ah, Magnus said you had some insecurities, I admit I didn't quite believe him when I first saw you in my doorway."

Alec looked down at his own hands. Magnus had been talking to his friend about more than just his novel.

"I'm trying to give you a compliment. Would it be too hard to believe that someone actually wanted to be your friend?" Woolsey said. Alec looked up at the other man sideways. "Alright, maybe I have ulterior motives with my visit," he added with a shrug.

"Oh?"

"While you do seem to be a great guy, I came here to warn you, as a friend does."

"Warn me?" Alec asked in surprise. This was about the conversation they'd had to cut short yesterday. He hadn't seen that one coming, he had honestly believed Woolsey would never elaborate on the small talk they'd had. The thought that the man had come to seduce him had been more believable, despite his supposed insecurities.

"I saw the way you looked at Magnus, while you visited yesterday. It's quite a rare look of admiration for someone, and I couldn't help but notice. I'm here to finish my warning about not breaking his heart, or your own for that matter," the man said. This visit seemed more and more unlikely by the minute.

"Excuse me?"

"Don't play dumb with me, Lightwood. You're in love with him, and it's quite understandable. You seem like the protective type, and I get why you feel like you have to be protective of Magnus. But I'm trying to tell you that you need to be careful with him," Woolsey explained. Alec cleared his throat, before answering, giving himself more time to phrase his reply.

"Okay, it's no secret that I obviously have feelings for Magnus. But Magnus is not gay. He doesn't want a relationship. I'm the one getting my heart broken here. I don't know why I'm still here, but something about him…" Alec's thoughts trailed off. He felt like he was the one risking everything just to please Magnus, who had seemed unwilling to let Alec leave, but also unwilling to make any commitments.

"Alexander, Magnus is a freewheeling bisexual, he fell in love once and now he's steering clear of anyone interesting, because he won't suffer the humiliation again," Woolsey said, once again shocking Alec with new information.

"What?"

Woolsey sighed and put down his tea.

"You are wondering why he doesn't want you to leave. I need to tell you the whole story for you to understand, but only if you really want to know?" he asked, and Alec didn't say anything, he thought it was a rather rhetorical question. "I knew the moment I laid eyes on you that he was about to get himself into trouble again. He doesn't show it, but Magnus has a way of creating a deep bond with few people, and I could tell the moment I saw you together that that's what he was doing with you."

"I don't understand?" Alec inquired.

"Years ago, when I had first helped him get on his own feet, he met someone. A model. You might have heard of him – William Herondale," Woolsey began his story. Alec knew who William Herondale was. He'd started his career about a decade ago, and everybody had adored his looks, he'd been perfect for just about any modelling job.

"I know of him," Alec nodded.

"So you might see where I'm going with this?" Woolsey asked, but Alec had no idea. "You know, for someone with such a bright imagination as yourself, you sure are blind to details. If you know Will, you know he's famous for his blue eyes and black hair, besides his Scottish accent of course."

Alec gaped. Did he resemble the gorgeous model William Herondale minus the accent? Surely a lot of people had blue eyes and black hair and didn't resemble each other at all?

"Exactly, now you get my point. Well, Will was one of Magnus' first jobs. The troubled newcomer became Magnus' little pet project and I tried to warn him about falling for a model, when trying to build a career in the fashion industry, but of course he couldn't help himself. He was lucky Will is an understanding and sympathetic guy, or he would have probably been deep in a sexual harassment lawsuit."

"Are you saying I'm just his latest pet project?" It all made sense. Magnus had a type – troubled blue eyed travellers. Alec had asked himself every night why Magnus had wanted Alec to stay. "It sounds like I'm the one who needs to be careful not to get my heart broken?" Alec challenged. He knew he was already well on his way.

"You didn't see Magnus after his incident with Will. He was a mess for several months, and Will hadn't lived with him in his apartment. And most of all, Will wasn't gay like you, so he didn't have the encouragement of that factor. Like he has with you."

"Not that I think this is any of your business, but I've had the talk with Magnus, he made it pretty clear that he doesn't want anything serious. And I made it pretty clear that I don't want to settle with anything less," Alec admitted.

"But you don't understand the mind of Magnus. I've known him half his life. I know he promised himself that he wouldn't let anyone close to him again, if he thought there was a chance they would break his heart. Some people don't do well with heartache. Some people love harder than others."

Alec could understand Woolsey's concern, but Woolsey also didn't know Alec. He didn't know anything about his personal life or who he was as a person.

"What about you? You lived with him, didn't you guys ever….?" Alec began. He wasn't entirely sure, but he did get a vibe off Woolsey. Maybe his ulterior motive wasn't a warning about breaking his friend's heart. Maybe it was his own heart he was really concerned about.

"Magnus and I have a mutual understanding. None of us wanted anything serious…"

"But that's exactly what he told me –"

"He wasn't lying with me, because we are too much alike. Magnus and I would never work. We would never fall in love with someone like ourselves, we're too troubled for that. But you are different. You're exactly what he wants, and that's something that scares him right now, even if he doesn't admit it," Woolsey explained.

…

After Woolsey left, Alec went back to look at his blank document on the computer. He hadn't written anything yet. It had almost been a day and he hadn't written anything. Woolsey had come to put thoughts in his head, and he couldn't help but think that it was because the man wanted to see Alec try to get to Magnus. Maybe he was giving up and giving a new person a chance? Or perhaps this was just another one of Alec's many ridiculously hypothetical theories. Woolsey Scott was a confusing and odd sort of person, and Alec didn't really know what to think of it. So instead of sitting on the couch, watching a blank screen, he got up and left the apartment for a change of scenery. He walked around in the neighbourhood and found a small coffee shop that he went into. It was a very small and hip place, and he liked the atmosphere, so he decided to pull out his notebook and sit by the window to watch people walk by as he wrote down notes. But instead of writing notes for his novel, he ended up writing notes and questions about Magnus instead.

" _What really happened with William Herondale?_

 _What do I have to do to make Magnus trust me?_

\- _I should tell him a personal story about myself._

\- _I should tell him my coming out story? What do I do if he laughs at me?_

 _Magnus (theories):_

 _1)_ _Deep emotional issues concerning his mother's death._

 _2)_ _Daddy issues._

 _3)_ _Unsure about his own sexuality (I wish)_ "

Alec didn't know why he always did this; he always analyzed everything. He'd gone to college for a year to study literature, but he'd dropped out, because he wouldn't be able to become a writer from being in a college course. He needed to experience life. But the one thing that was deeply ingrained in him was the way they had always been taught to analyze details. Alec searched for details in his mind that would reveal any of Magnus' secrets or issues. The guy hated his dad, but he wouldn't tell him why, because it seemed he didn't know exactly what the man had done to his mother. Alec hated the part of his mind that always did this, because it drove him insane. Eventually he left the café and went back to the loft. Magnus wasn't there yet, or so he'd thought. After a few minutes Magnus came out of the bathroom completely naked, while drying his hair with a towel. Alec froze. Magnus grinned.

"Hey there," he said. Alec opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came of it. He hadn't really looked much at Magnus' muscles, when they'd been naked against each other, he'd "only" felt the muscles. But looking at the man's lean body now, while damp from the shower, Alec's mind began to write sonnets and villanelles about those abs. "Sorry, I'm guessing the same goes for being naked in the apartment as what goes for my _lovely_ gestures?"

Alec turned his back to the other man and began massaging his own temples, before he would get a headache from all the thoughts running through his head. Magnus was doing this on purpose, he told himself. He was trying to mess with his mind.

"I'm not gonna tell you to put clothes on, because it is your apartment, but I'm also not gonna look at you while you're naked," Alec said. "And stop smirking!"

"You're not looking at me, how can you tell if I'm smirking?" Magnus chuckled.

"I just can. You're overly confident and I realize my reaction is only going to boost that confidence," Alec sighed, as he realized how dramatic he was. Maybe he should just write chick lit instead?

"Are you sure you're writing dark fantasy and not chick lit?" Magnus wondered. Alec forgot to breathe for a second, and turned around. He avoided looking at Magnus' body and just looked at his eyes.

"Do you read minds?" Alec asked. Magnus suppressed a laugh.

"No, I was just wondering if this was some sort of scene I was helping you create for your novel, because if it was it would most likely make a good companion for Bridget Jones," the man grinned. "I've heard of method acting, but not method writing?"

"If it was a scene from a chick lit, then a) I would be the female protagonist and there's just no way I'm woman enough for that part, and b) we would end up making out and confess our love for each, while c) a third person walks in and causes drama," Alec said, and almost as if he'd said the magic word the door bell sounded in the apartment. Horror went through Alec, as images flashed behind his eyes of Woolsey storming in to claim Magnus.

"I ordered thai," Magnus shrugged and walked over to get the door. The poor delivery guy didn't know what to do with himself, when a naked man opened the door to pay for the delivery. The entire scene had Alec flabbergasted, but Magnus turned back to break his astonishment after closing the front door again. "Well, at least it's not your imagination that suffers," he said and walked to the kitchen.

"What do you mean?"

"I came home to find the laptop on the couch with an empty document just waiting to be filled. Is something bothering you?" Magnus wondered, taking out bowls for them to eat from.

"Besides seemingly having to eat with a naked person? No, everything fades in comparison," Alec raised an eyebrow.

"Oh shit, sorry. I forgot." Magnus walked back to his bed "room" and put on some clothes.

"How do you forget that you're naked?" Alec mumbled, while taking a seat at the kitchen island. Magnus had been working for almost ten hours today, and he was still in a bright mood, while Alec hadn't been doing any work at all, and he felt exhausted.

"So what's up?" Magnus asked, as he sat down next to Alec to have dinner. Alec looked at him inquiringly. "You have written one word – _shadowhunter_ , and that's it. I'm sorry I looked, but you had left it out in the open."

"Yeah, I had a visitor today," Alec said. Magnus wrinkled his forehead. "Woolsey came by to talk."

"Oh, that's nice. Had he been talking to some editors?"

Alec took a deep breath before going on.

"He came to warn me."

"Ah, about becoming a writer? I heard Simon & Schuster turned down _American Psycho_. Every writer is bound to get rejection letters," Magnus shrugged. "You need a thick skin to be a writer."

"He came to warn me not to hurt you," Alec finally said. Alec could tell Magnus was wondering how much had been said.

"Look…"

"Was he your first love?" Alec interrupted.

"Woolsey?" Magnus grimaced.

"William Herondale?"

"Oh. Well, no, I don't know?" It wasn't really an answer.

"I promised myself I would stop doing this, but I have to say this – why do I have a feeling that you're going to be the one to hurt me?" Alec looked at Magnus, trying to capture the man's eyes, but he avoided him for a change. It was silly that Alec felt he needed to defend himself like this, because they weren't even a couple!

"I don't know what Woolsey said to you about Will…"

"He really didn't say much, only that you avoided a sexual harassment lawsuit," Alec said.

"Woolsey doesn't know everything that went on at that time. We were young and wild. It's not all about Will."

"Were you in love with him?" Alec tried not to sound resentful. He wasn't really, because it had happened ages ago. He was more curious, if anything.

"I don't think I knew what love was. I'm still not sure I know. I haven't grown up around love like you have, Alec. I think it was more like infatuation, and it ended very abruptly, because more people got involved. It's really long over, and I rarely ever speak to the people from that time of my life anymore," Magnus explained.

"So you shut them out?" Alec asked, and Magnus seemed to notice his concern.

"You're nothing like them. I won't shut you out."

"You're kind of already doing that," he shrugged shyly, still feeling like a jealous boyfriend, but couldn't really help it either.

"It's not something I'm aware of. I don't know what it is that I do to shut someone out."

"Have you ever seen a therapist?" Alec asked.

"How did this turn into an intervention?" Magnus leaned back, to get more space between them.

"It's not an intervention. There's nothing wrong with therapy. You lost your mother, and your stepfather beat you. I'm just trying to make sense of you."

"I was in therapy after my mom. Woolsey made me. I haven't pushed him away, now have I?" Magnus said. Alec had a hard time imagining anyone shutting Woolsey out. He seemed to possess a persistent sort of personality.

"But you also haven't told Woolsey about everything that went on apparently."

"I told my therapist, when I was twenty. It's fine. You're making a big deal out of nothing," Magnus waved his hand at Alec trying to shut him up. It didn't work, because he too knew how to be persistent.

"You still cried yourself to sleep the other night?"

"Because I had a hot piece of ass in my apartment, and he doesn't want me to fuck him with no strings attached," Magnus gave Alec a flirtatious smirk. He was clearly trying to change the subject.

"That was before we even discussed that part," Alec pointed out. Magnus' expression dropped, and he decided to be serious for once.

"You reminded me of Will," he admitted. "Except in contrast to Will, you actually seem to care about me."

Alec looked Magnus in the eyes, quietly assuring him that he did care and he wanted to listen to everything he wanted to tell him. Magnus needed to know that someone actually wanted to know all of who he was, and not just bits and pieces. "Will had an acquired sort of personality. It was his shield, and it was what got him so far in the industry. I spent so much time with him that I started acquiring the personality myself, getting my own shield. It's why I'm so outgoing and superficial to this day. I saw how much it worked and it got me to where I am today without too much heartache and sweat. I meet a lot of interesting people in my line of work, and they are temporary. No one ever stays."

"But I'm not one of those people. I'm not in the industry," Alec assured him.

"I know, but your presence sent me back to those days."

"What happened with Will?"

"Will and I started partying a lot. We did some stupid things, almost got caught with drugs once. We met a couple at a club, Jem and Tessa, and they wanted us to join them. They thought we were a couple as well. For a while, we pretended, but I found that Will was deeply in love with Tessa and he started disregarding me. I hated it, and the personality I had acquired got more intense for a while. He'd indirectly taught me the defence mechanism that I needed to get over him and everything else. But it was only infatuation. The three of them were glamorous and cool, and I wanted to be part of it, though eventually I learned that I couldn't be a part of it, because those three shared a special bond. It was tough to be rejected by Will, but it nearly destroyed me to be rejected by all three at the same time."

Magnus' past was more messed up than Alec had anticipated. Woolsey's joke about a threesome suddenly seemed a bit offensive and cruel.

"I understand if you don't want to stay here anymore," Magnus looked down.

"I'm just confused about where I fit into this?"

"You don't. I'm sorry that Woolsey put thoughts in your head, although I know I come off as unavailable…"  
"You don't come off as unavailable, you told me you didn't want anything serious," Alec interrupted.

"Because I don't want you to be another Will."

"I'm not Will!" Alec raised his voice.

"I know. That was a stupid thing of me to say. But he led me on, because of Tessa, and I fell for it. I fell for it so hard, and I don't want to do the same mistake again."

"Then you won't," Alec said. Magnus searched Alec's face, probably trying to figure out what he meant. "Now that I know how you feel, I won't back down. I won't give up, no matter how long it takes for me to make you trust that I won't run off with some bimbo."

"Tessa isn't a bimbo," Magnus chuckled.

"Crack whore?" Alec offered.

"We did do crack, but Tessa is actually a quite intelligent lady."

"What does she do now?" Alec wondered.

"I suppose she is living her happily ever after with the two loves of her life."

"Really?"

"They all seemed to love each other equally," Magnus shrugged, something dark showed in his eyes.

"I've heard of sisterwives, I suppose brotherhusbands shouldn't be that much different," Alec mused and Magnus laughed. Alec started, when he felt Magnus' hand on his.

"You shouldn't give up on me yet. It's probably already too late, and I will most likely be devastated if you leave. I might stay in bed for months," he said, somewhat joking.

"I won't leave. But I want to know that I'm not just another pet project or an infatuation?" Alec said. He knew they had a real connection, he could feel it, but he wanted to make sure Magnus could feel it too.

"You're more than an infatuation, Alexander Lightwood. You're someone I could actually fall madly in love with," he said, being serious for about a second before cracking a smile. He was making fun of Alec, and Alec shoved the other man away from himself.

"You don't know how to be serious for more than five minutes, do you?" he sniggered. Magnus took a deep breath, before continuing.

"Will never got me to open up like this. He never even knew about my mom. He only knew I was parentless," Magnus admitted.

"I'm glad you told me," he said and caressed Magnus' hand, allowing himself to use his own lovely gestures to get to Magnus; and by the softening look in Magnus' eyes, it appeared to be working so far.


	6. Chapter 6

**The Coming Out Story**

Alec had stayed with Magnus for a few weeks now and he had gotten a good start with the writing process. He felt like his characters were really coming together, and he started to feel a bit homesick, as most of his characters were inspired by his friends. For the weeks he'd now stayed with Magnus he had tried hard to ignore all the flirting Magnus had thrown his way. He knew it was only part of his personality. However, he did continue to be kind and caring towards Magnus so he would realize that Alec wasn't just anybody; he wasn't going to split the minute he got what he wanted. And he'd gotten somewhat closer to what he wanted – something he hadn't realized just how much he wanted before Magnus – a book deal. Alec hadn't talked much to Woolsey since their odd talk, but Woolsey had done his part in helping Alec on the way. Woolsey had gotten him in contact with an editor, who was willing to help Alec once he had the first draft. Therefore Alec worked hard every day, while alone in Magnus' apartment. He was often deep inside his fantasy world slaying demons and creating new complicated romances. It gave him a chance to escape his own complicated romance. Nothing intimate had happened between him and Magnus since the night of Alec's first blowjob, and Alec was still unsure whether Magnus was available to him or not. Magnus hadn't had any one-night stands while Alec had stayed with him, and at least that seemed like a good sign. But perhaps it was only out of respect that he didn't bring anyone to the apartment. Magnus had sometimes come home drunk, trying to seduce Alec, but each time he'd guided the other man up to his bed and just stayed with him till he fell asleep. The nights out were getting fewer though, and Alec thought he might soon be ready for the next step. It could go perfect and Magnus would prove to be a great boyfriend, or it could go horribly wrong and end with Alec not wanting to give his heart to anyone else. Of course he knew he was only being dramatic, and most people wouldn't over-think emotions this way, but he had always had to be the one protecting everyone close to him. He'd never had anyone be protective of him, and maybe that's what he needed for once. Magnus was protective in his own way – he paid for Alec to go by cab, because he didn't think Alec's van was safe in the city traffic; he was interested in Alec's book and often offered his ideas; and the most attractive trade about Magnus was his gift to make Alec feel comfortable in other people's company, he always felt like he had Magnus' undivided attention at any business party he was brought to.

Alec was ready. He was ready to give himself to Magnus, and he had ordered a nice dinner and the most expensive bottle of wine he had ever bought, and set everything up in the loft. He had made sure the apartment was romantic when Magnus got home from work. What he hadn't expected was that Magnus didn't come home alone –

"Alec, you won't believe it!" Magnus said as he entered the loft. Alec moved closer to get a look at what Magnus was carrying in his arms. It was a cat – a grey tabby kitten. "Someone left a box of kittens on the sidewalk, and this precious baby just looked at me."

"It looked at you?" Alec raised his eyebrows. He had to admit it was a sweet kitten, but you didn't just take kittens off the sidewalk.

"Yes, can you believe it?"

Magnus' spontaneity almost made Alec re-evaluate his previous thoughts, but then Magnus scanned the apartment with his eyes, noticing the lit candles, the dinner waiting at the table with wine in two glasses. He set the cat down, while gaping at the romantic setting.

"You cooked dinner?" Magnus looked at Alec now.

"Well, I don't think 'cooked' is the proper verb, I _arranged_ it onto the plates," he shrugged with his hands in his pockets, suddenly nervous. The cat went to play with the rug under the couch. Magnus seemed to have lost his trail of thoughts, and seemingly speechless he pulled his shoulders up into a shrug and said, "I think I'll call him Chairman Meow." Alec suppressed a grin.

"Clever," he replied. "But you now, a cat needs things like a litter box and toys and food."

"I'm not a child Alec. I know what a cat needs. But I wanted to go get you to come with me to the pet store?" Magnus explained. Alec softened a bit.

"I did grow up with a lot of animals. But we can't leave him here alone with nothing?"

They both looked towards the table at the perfectly cooked steaks. Alec sighed, as Magnus looked at him apologetically.

"Okay, but no wine for the underage kitten," Alec pointed out and Magnus beamed.

"We'll get dinner on the way home," Magnus said.

…

Alec had no idea whether it was unintentionally, or if Magnus had wanted to avoid a romantic dinner by giving the cat half of it. The small creature seemed to enjoy it though, which made Alec feel warm inside. The kitten might have starved to death if Magnus hadn't picked it up.

Magnus was acting strange on the way to the pet store. He was quiet, and he was usually never quiet for that long. Maybe Alec had freaked him out with dinner. It was possible now that Magnus knew Alec a bit better, he didn't want more than friendship from Alec. He cursed himself for not having listened to Jace, when he had told him to take advantage of Magnus' sex drive. Jaec knew Alec hadn't had sex yet, and he was eager to help him on the way with his advice.

…

It was a small pet shop they went to, but it had everything they needed for the kitten and more. The two of them could barely carry everything Magnus bought for the little prince. Besides the essential needs of a litter box and food and such, he bought a scratching post, two beds and a princess tent for Chairman Meow.

"You know it doesn't need all this?" Alec said, as Magnus was paying for everything.

"He," Magnus corrected.

" _He_ will be fine on a pillow or a blanket."

The cashier eyed Alec as if he was the one being unreasonable, and he gave up arguing, because Magnus could afford it anyway.

"I want to spoil him. I saved his life, you know," Magnus said a bit proud.

"You're a real hero," Alec smirked as they walked out of the shop. He was carrying all the heavy stuff, while Magnus carried the tent and the food. Magnus seemed to have warmed up a bit after the store.

"I'm sorry I ruined dinner, but…" he began.

"Don't. We'll talk about it when we get home," Alec interrupted. He didn't feel like having a big talk, while he could barely see where he was walking because of the cat accessories stacked in his arms.

Inside the apartment they couldn't find the kitten right away. Magnus went to search for him, while Alec unpacked the stuff they'd just bought. He had just arranged the litter box next to the front door, when Magnus and Chairman Meow came out from behind the bedroom walls.

"He was hiding under my bed," Magnus said, and began to talk to the kitten in baby language. Alec bit his lip to stop himself from chuckling, and went to drink from his glass of wine. He had no idea how much he had needed that glass of wine, and he felt himself relax from the mere taste of it. Sometimes it was worth it to spent a bit of extra money on a good bottle of wine, he thought, as he looked out of the kitchen window. Magnus came up to stand next to him, once he was done settling the cat into one of his beds.

"I'll go get dinner," he said. Alec caught his wrist, before he could leave.

"No, it's fine. I'm not that hungry. You can have the spare steak, I'll eat salad."

Magnus eased his hand into Alec's and their fingers intertwined. He took a step closer. Alec held his breath, because Magnus had rarely looked this serious around him, and he didn't want to scare that part of him away.

"I like what you've done with the place," he said in a low voice. They were only inches apart and Magnus looked down at their hands to avoid eye contact. "We can share the steak. And we'll light the candles again."

"And play house?" Alec eyed him. Magnus looked shocked for a moment, probably thinking something completely different from what Alec was thinking, so he turned his head to look at the cat, which was now sprawled on a pillow on the couch. Magnus chuckled. "I told you he would be fine with a pillow."

"You don't mind sharing your pillow with a kitten, do you?"

Alec would much rather share a pillow with Magnus, but he would settle for the kitten because Magnus asked him. Alec's hesitation seemed to make Magnus nervous.

"You don't have to share, I was only joking. I have lots of other pillows."

"Right," Alec said, and took his hand back before bottoming the rest of his wine. He went to the island and poured himself another glass.

"I'm sorry I ruined whatever plans you had for the evening," Magnus said.

"It's alright. It was only dinner and backgammon," Alec said with his back to Magnus. But the other man knew him by now, and he knew by the way he set his shoulders in a tense stance that he was lying.

"You're lying." Alec turned around to look at him. He was really a sight for sore eyes. Magnus was only wearing khakis and a v-neck T-shirt, it was nothing fancy, but it was just the way Alec enjoyed seeing him. He liked it when Magnus wore make-up and glitter on occasion, but he liked it just as much when he wore something simple without any makeup.

"I was hoping…" he began, but stopped from lack of words. He had been going through the talk inside his head all day, but when the moment was here, he was unable to form the sentence. He swallowed more wine instead.

"You were hoping for more than dinner and board games?" Magnus figured.

"Yes."

Magnus went to sit down in front of one of the plates on the kitchen island. Alec turned so he was still facing the other man with a glass of wine in his hand.

"Alec, I've been thinking about something," Magnus said. Alec braced himself for what might come. This might be it; this might be the moment he had feared, the moment Magnus would reject him. He would have to leave; he would have to go home. Magnus cleared his throat, as if he was about to say something difficult. "I have really been enjoying the time you've been here. I feel better when you're around, and I don't think I've ever been this happy. The only thing making me miserable, is having to just look at you every day…"

"Oh." That took a turn halfway through. It was a bit more straightforward and harsh than Alec had imagined it would be, and he wasn't really following.

"Alexander, I'm saying that I don't want to just look at you, I want more. You have no idea how gorgeous you are all hours of the day. It's so distracting I haven't looked at another person for weeks now. I have worked so hard not to overstep any boundaries, both mine and yours."

Alec had never had so many overwhelming emotions running through him at the same time – relief, happiness, warmth, affection and longing.

"I've been contemplating for so long, whether it was a good idea to take the next step with someone I care so much about. And I think most people would say I have just been wasting my energy on silly thoughts, creating problems that aren't real problems. I've been driving Camille and Catarina mad, and they most likely hate me by now," Magnus admitted. "Please say something now. When I saw the lit candles and the wine, I just assumed…"

"You assumed right," Alec sighed with relief. Magnus nodded, showing his own relief.

"So what now?" Magnus wondered, and leaving everything to Alec, because he knew this sort of emotion was new to him as well. Alec said just what he had been thinking, while Magnus had been talking for the past few minutes –

"Now I really want to kiss you, and then have dinner," he smiled, and Magnus returned his smile. But instead of taking charge, as Magnus had done the last and only time they had made out, he stayed still in his seat. Alec walked around the corner of the table and the tall stool Magnus was sitting on almost made him as tall as Alec. He watched Magnus' lips, which he had parted slightly, inviting him to kiss them. Alec raised his hand and ran his thumb over Magnus' lips. It was no surprise that he had such soft lips, because Alec had been finding ChapSticks all over the apartment. He replaced his finger with his own lips, softly pressing them against Magnus'. The other man finally leaned forward, stumbling off the stool, wanting more, needing more pressure against his lips. Alec pulled him closer by pushing his hands against the small of Magnus' back. The kiss seemed to be over in a minute, but it had probably been several. Magnus was the one who broke off the kiss. They leaned their foreheads against each other, catching their breaths for a moment.

"That was a delicious kiss," Magnus whispered. "But I'm beginning to starve a bit." He looked down at the food on his plate. It had to be cold by now.

"I'll heat your steak," Alec smirked. He grabbed the plate and threw it in the microwave. He avoided looking at Magnus while the dinner was heating. The kiss had given him a sort of high. It had had emotions that their first kiss hadn't had. Intimate thoughts popped into Alec's head and he ran a hand through his hair, while calming down again. Magnus moved up behind him, pulling his arms around Alec from behind, resting his chin on Alec's shoulder.

"Do you mind if we don't do anything other than cuddling tonight?" Magnus whispered, and Alec could feel his breath behind his ear, feel Magnus' hands stroke his chest, making his insides wild with desire. So he turned around in Magnus' grasp and looked up at him. The unsettling feeling of his stomach churning reappeared, and not for the first time since he'd almost walked out on Magnus. Having your feelings returned didn't help with the butterflies in your stomach, once you looked at the person you were falling in love with.

"We'll do whatever you want. I have a feeling I would probably sleep on the rooftop if you asked me to," Alec whispered. A smile threatened to come out on Magnus' lips.

"I would never ask you to do anything that would give you a cold. I don't have a desire to torture you," Magnus said, and Alec sniggered at the irony. Here he was, the inexperienced lover, and he was the one who wanted nothing more than to rip the other man's clothes off and kiss him all over, so he could see that someone wanted him for who he was, and not for how he looked or for his influence and fame. But Alec also knew that being willing to take his time to get there might prove the same. Alec wasn't going anywhere. He wouldn't pick up and leave like most other people in Magnus' life.

…

When they had finished dinner, sharing the steak on Magnus' demand, they moved to the couch, where Magnus settled against Alec's shoulder. Alec pulled him closer with his arms around the other man and felt like he had finally found what he had been searching for.

"Tell me a story," Magnus said, when his body had relaxed against Alec's. Alec was running his hand through Magnus' hair, and it seemed to have a calming effect on the man. He had to come up with one hell of a story, if he didn't want Magnus to fall asleep while he was talking. Alec thought about a personal story, and pulled the other arm around Magnus in an embrace. It was a habit of his protective nature.

"I can tell you my coming out story?" he suggested and Magnus stretched his neck to eye him.

"Sure."

"I first found out, when I began to have a silly crush on Jace."

"I thought he was like your brother?" Magnus inquired.

"He is now, but he wasn't always. I've only known him since he was eleven. I was twelve. It was silly, because it was more like an infatuation," he explained.

"I can relate to that," Magnus commented.

Alec continued his story, about how Jace hadn't noticed anything. He still hadn't to this day, or he just didn't show that he knew. Izzy of course had known since Alec was eight, or so she claimed. So when she noticed that Alec began to pay too much attention to Jace, she took action. Izzy always had a plan, when it came to romance. She had tried to get him to admit to it for years, by leaving small invitations for him in their conversations, but he didn't take the bait till he was about eighteen. Izzy had acted like it was the best thing that had ever happened – her brother, a homosexual. She always wanted to be special. And Alec never wanted to be special. Well, Izzy had set him up with one of her friends, who had rejected her and she had later found out why he didn't fancy her. The guy had been very straightforward, and had aggressively tried to seduce Alec all evening. Alec had deflected all flirtation that night, but in the end it didn't work. The guy didn't take a hint. They were at a local restaurant, and Alec was looking around nervously for familiar faces, not sure whether he wanted to see someone he knew or not. Someone he knew might be able to help him out of the situation, but someone he knew wouldn't know why he was in the situation in the first place. The guy interpreted Alec's nervousness as regular behaviour for someone in the company of a person they liked, so before Alec could even react to it, the guy leaned over the table and kissed Alec, holding on to his shirt, so he couldn't escape. Unfortunately, this was also the evening that his parents had decided to accompany their co-workers to a more hip place in the small town and walked in the very minute a guy was kissing their son.

Magnus chuckled, and Alec was surprised he hadn't fallen asleep yet.

"Not funny. My dad nearly had heart attack. I don't know what he thought was worse, that his son was a faggot or that his co-workers had seen me kiss another dude," Alec said, and absentmindedly kissed Magnus' hair.

"Hey, don't use that word."

"Faggot?" Alec asked.

"Yes, that word."

"That's the word my father used, when he weeks later stopped avoiding me and asked me what I thought had turned me gay," Alec explained.

"Oh Gosh," Magnus sighed.

"My mother seems to have come to terms with it. My dad is still uncomfortable around me, but I don't see him a lot anyway."

"Why not?"

"I moved in with Izzy. He moved out of town," Alec shrugged. "My mom divorced him two years ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"I'm not. He cheated on her. That's unforgivable," Alec replied.

"Oh."

Alec leaned away from Magnus, so he could look down at him.

"Why, did you ever cheat?"

"No, I guess I've never been in a relationship that serious, so I've never had to consider the consequences of such actions," Magnus said and straightened up, getting out of Alec's embrace.

"Right." Magnus seemed to notice Alec's concern.

"Alexander…" he began, and started to play with Alec's hand. "I've never sat like this with someone before. It's a whole new kind of intimacy that I'm not used to, but I can feel it does things to me. For the first time since before my mother past, I have the fear that I'm going to disappoint someone. I never had much care about disappointing anyone other than my mom."

"It wasn't my intention to put that kind of pressure on you. I think it's impossible not to disappoint a few people in your life, but my parents' story goes beyond that. Their story is about trust. My dad had an affair for several years. It began right before they decided to have my little brother, and we never knew. Maybe that's why my family has a lot of trust issues."

Magnus looked sadder than ever, but Alec could feel that it was a combination of compassion and sympathy. Magnus had his own share of trust issues, which were an entirely different story.

"Look at us, we're a mess. Maybe we won't work?" he said, in such a low voice Alec wasn't sure if he heard him right. His heart sank, and he closed his eyes to clear his head. He opened his eyes again, when moments later he felt hands on both sides of his face. "I'm sorry. That was a dumb thing to say. I want it to work. I've never wanted anything more in my life. Please ignore it when I say stupid things like that?" Magnus said, and began kissing Alec desperately. Alec allowed a few kisses, before breaking it off.

"I'm tired. Too much wine," he shrugged, and stood up.

"Please sleep in my bed tonight?" Magnus said. Alec eyed him. He was the one who wanted to take things slow. "Just sleep, of course," he added calmly. Alec nodded and went to brush his teeth.

Alec went to wait for Magnus in his bed. The kitten had long gone to sleep on one of the beds they had bought, and Magnus had taken the time to brag about his choice of cat accessories. When he came back from the bathroom he was only wearing a pair of pajama pants. Magnus seemed smug about Alec's stare and climbed into bed. Once again, Magnus allowed Alec to be the big spoon.

"I've never met anyone as cuddly as you," Magnus murmured.

"What, the girls you usually sleep with don't want to cuddle you?" Alec faked a shock.

"A lot of them don't stay. And those who do stay on their end of the bed."

Alec inhaled the smell of Magnus, while getting a bit of joy out of being allowed this different kind of intimacy, something that Magnus didn't share with anyone else.


	7. Chapter 7

**Boyfriends? Boyfriends**

Alec woke up, when he felt Magnus placing small kisses on his bare chest. He moaned quietly, as he tried to wake up. Magnus moved his way up to Alec's lips, biting down slightly here and there probably leaving a few marks, but Alec welcomed the morning kisses.

"Mmh," he sighed, when Magnus lay back down beside him.

"I couldn't help myself," Magnus admitted.

"It's a nice way to wake up," Alec mumbled. He hadn't even opened his eyes yet, so for all he knew he might still be asleep and inside a wonderful dream. Something else added weight to the bed and to Alec's legs, and he remembered the kitten Magnus had brought home last night. He finally opened his eyes, and looked down at the small kitten approaching his face. It tried to place itself on top of Alec's head, but he pushed it lightly so it didn't cover his face. Magnus was watching him carefully, trying not to laugh. It would probably scare the kitten away if he did.

"I think he likes you," Magnus said.

"I'll say you have some competition," Alec chuckled. Magnus rolled out of bed. "Hey, where are you going?" Alec had no idea what time it was.

"You made me jealous," he teased and walked to the bathroom. Alec fought the desire to follow the man into the bathroom, and petted the kitten on his pillow instead to distract himself. His desire was getting stronger by every minute Magnus showed him the sweet and intimate side of himself that he had last night. And it made him feel like a horny teenager, something he hadn't quite experienced when he had actually been a teenager; at least not in this extreme. He was staring at the ceiling, while absentmindedly still petting Chairman Meow, when he heard Magnus approach the bed again.

"Do you think other couples do this too?" he asked. Alec looked at him. He was only wearing boxer briefs.

"Do what?"

"Wait. For this long?" Magnus wondered. Alec placed his words carefully, rolling over so Magnus now had his full attention.

"I don't know what other couples do. I've never been in one. I don't mind taking it slow, but you should also know that whenever you're done taking it slow, I'm ready," Alec smiled softly. Magnus swallowed hard. Alec knew why Magnus was nervous. He'd never had his feelings returned either, and that's why he was hesitating. He was scared of getting hurt. Alec also knew that Magnus wasn't used to not being in control of something. Just like Alec wasn't used to someone taking his feelings into consideration. The people at home sometimes seemed to be unaware that he actually had any feelings. The two of them were a perfect match, and he was only waiting for Magnus to accept that.

"Maybe we should put our next step into a calendar?" Magnus offered. He was a businessman, and he needed this control in his personal life, because Alec wasn't just an accidental one-night stand. Alec cracked a smile.

"How's Tuesday?"

"You're making fun of me, but I'm serious. Don't tell me you haven't thought about it?" Magnus tried to smile, but he seemed too nervous to do so full-heartedly.

"I have, because I overanalyze everything. But I also want it to be somewhat spontaneous. And I know you; you like to go on a whim. You're only suggesting this, because you're nervous."

"You're right," he said and went to his closet to find clothes. "You're right," he repeated as he pulled out a dress shirt. "How about we don't talk about it anymore and see what happens? I'm starting to feel like such a drama queen. I usually go with the flow. Though I also like drama…" Magnus' thoughts seemed to trail off.

"Let's go with the flow," Alec grinned. The kitten purred into his ear. "You're going to work today?"

"Yes," Magnus smiled down at him, while buttoning his deep purple shirt.

"So you're leaving me here to babysit?"

"Seems like he's in good hands. He already likes you better than he likes me," Magnus said and went down to the kitchen, but he came back a few seconds later. "Could you make me expresso?"

"Espresso. It's called _es_ presso," Alec sighed and stroked the kitten's head, whispering to it, "it's okay, he doesn't understand coffee." He rolled out of bed and Magnus began packing his bag. Alec eyed the man running around the loft half naked looking stressed. They'd probably overslept, Alec realized. "Are you going to wear pants to work?" he wondered. Magnus looked down at himself.

"Oh shit! You could have said something," he mumbled and went back up to his closet.

"I wasn't sure if it was a no-pants workday today," Alec called to him. He sort of enjoyed seeing Magnus nervous and a bit out of it because of him. It gave him a boost of confidence.

"You're very funny today. How did we trade personality overnight?"

"Maybe it's a _Freaky Friday_ situation?" Alec offered and looked at his reflection in the oven. "Nope, I'm still the paler one."

Magnus came back to drink his cup of espresso, wearing a tight pair of leather pants. Alec bit his lower lip, and Magnus didn't notice how Alec was ogling him. He was about to run out of the door without a goodbye, but then he remembered and ran back to give Alec a sweet kiss on the mouth. Once the door had shut after him, Alec exhaled deeply. The Chairman came into the kitchen and walked between Alec's legs.

"I know. He really is dreamy, right?" he asked the kitten. "Even though he doesn't know anything about coffee." Alec continued to walk around, while occasionally talking to the cat. The cat just stared at him from time to time, as if he might have heard Alec say something important, but then looked away again when he realized it wasn't important after all. "I'm talking too much? Oh, that's right. You probably want your own breakfast," he figured and refilled the kitten's bowl, before getting his laptop and getting ready to continue work.

…

Alec had been writing for a few hours, when he needed a break he looked at the time and figured Jace would be off work by now, so he called his friend up on Skype. Jace flashed a smile at Alec first thing, as he answered his call.

"Hey man," he grinned.

"Why are you smiling like that?" Alec grimaced. Jace pointed at his own neck.

"You got a little something there."

Alec looked at his own tiny image at the corner of the screen and noticed a hickey that he hadn't realized Magnus had planted on him.

"Oh shit. I fell… this morning," Alec tried.

"On your neck?" It was obvious from Jace's expression that he was aware of the lie.

"Shut up," Alec rolled his eyes.

"I guess things are getting heated then?" Jace wiggled his eyebrows.

"Don't do that. Don't make it into a silly teenage crush."

"Sorry. It's just a bit weird, because you know, you haven't had a boyfriend before. I feel as a brother I should have teased you about boys at some point," Jace said.

"I didn't tease you about girls?"

"No, you were busy trying to save me from myself and not from girls. Are we just going to ignore that I just called him your boyfriend, and you didn't object?" Jace raised an eyebrow.

"We're taking things slow," Alec shrugged, thinking about last night.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Jace said, probably expecting Alec to say 'no'.

"Last night I planned a romantic dinner at home, because I wanted to get out of the friendzone and make him aware of what I wanted. But he brought home a kitten and we had to go shop for everything it needed." Alec stopped talking and Jace appeared to be analyzing the facts in his head.

"You just called his place 'home'?"

"I've never felt more at home than I do here?" Alec shrugged. Honestly, he had never felt more at home than last night, when sleeping next to Magnus and waking up to his kisses. Something in Jace's expression softened. It was a rare trade for his friend, but Alec knew it meant he was happy for him. Him and Jace had always had that kind of connection.

"Well, I'm glad. You should bring Magnus here sometime. I would love to meet him. And I know the other guys miss you. Izzy is starting to go insane, and Max keeps talking about wanting to go kayaking when you get home," Jace said. Alec couldn't help but smile. Max and him had a tradition every year around this time, and they would either go kayaking or out on a sailboat or fishing. A small familiar redhead appeared behind Jace, and a smile widened across her face.

"Alec!" Clary greeted. Alec didn't think he'd ever seen her this happy. The two of them hadn't always been on best terms, but it had been getting better within the past year.

"Hey Clary."

"Did you tell him yet?" Clary asked Jace. Jace shook his head amusedly. "Alec, I have my first exhibition by the end of next week!"

"That's amazing!" Alec laughed. Things were going great for his friends at home. Clary had always wanted a big breakthrough, and she really was a truly talented artist. Clary was still so young and it was amazing for her to already get her dream started like this. "I've actually been meaning to ask you something," he began.

"Please tell me you're coming to see the opening first?" she looked at him pleadingly.

"I'll talk to Magnus about it," he assured her.

"Oh good, you should bring him too. I really want to meet him."

"I'll see what I can do," Alec promised.

"So what did you want to ask me?"

"Well, you know that I'm working on a book, I was just wondering if you would…" He didn't get to finish his question before she cut him off.

"Yes! Of course I will!"

"Clary, you don't know what he was going to ask you," Jace chuckled.

"He wants me to draw his characters so he has inspiration, while he's writing, right?"

"Actually," Alec hesitated. He hadn't thought about that, but it was a pretty good idea to have images of his characters. "I also wanted you to do the covers if I ever get a publisher?"

Clary seemed to be in shock for a moment.

"Is that even how it works?"

"I'm not sure. But I hope I have some say in what's going on my cover or at least who's going to do it?"

"I would love to," Clary said, tears popping up in her eyes. Alec swallowed hard. He loved making his friends happy like this, because it felt absolutely amazing. Now he just hoped he hadn't jinxed anything. He had been in contact with an editor, but nothing was final of course.

"I'll see what I can do about next week," Alec said. The door to the apartment opened, and Magnus came inside. He must have gotten off early.

"Great," Clary said. Magnus froze by the door, probably not wanting to disturb them, but Alec smiled at him to let him know they were just talking.

"Was that the door? Did Magnus just come home?" Jace wondered.

"Say hi to Magnus for us," Clary said. Magnus strode across the room and looked at Alec's screen with a smile.

"Who are this lovely lady and handsome young man?" he asked, and brushed Alec's back so they couldn't see them touching.

"Magnus, this is Clary and Jace," he introduced. His two friends waved their hands like the dorks they truly were.

"Hi Clary and Jace," Magnus chuckled.

"Okay, you've said hello. Bye," Alec said and ended the call. When he looked up at Magnus the guy was staring at him, biting his lip. "What?" Alec asked nervously.

"I've just…" Magnus cleared his throat. "I've just been thinking about you all day. I sound like such a cliché," he sighed and face-palmed himself. Alec chuckled, and took the man's hand in his own, caressing his fingers.

"I don't care how cliché you sound. I kind of like it."

"Of course you do, you're a writer!" he said, and this time it looked like he gave himself a mental face-palm. Alec didn't have time to say or do anything else, before Magnus began kissing him heavily and almost desperately. Alec stumbled off the stool and crashed his body against Magnus. It took them a moment to steady themselves, lips still touching and hands everywhere. It was almost like the first time they'd made out, except everything was different now, and Alec could feel that this time Magnus' heart was in it too. Alec fumbled to find a spot of bare skin on Magnus' stomach, his hands shaking under the other man's shirt, as he felt his way up Magnus' abs. Magnus moaned against his mouth and drew in a breath, when Alec's hand moved around the man's back to pull him into an embrace.

"Is something wrong?" Alec asked nervously. When he looked up at Magnus' eyes they seemed darker somehow, full of desire.

"Let's move to the bed," he said and pulled away.

"O-okay," Alec stuttered, as Magnus closed his fingers around Alec's wrist and dragged him with him. Magnus pushed him down onto the bed and crawled on top of him, leaving kisses down Alec's jaw, while exploring Alec's body with his hands. Alec had a difficult time gaining a normal rhythm to breathe. Everything was going so fast, but it also seemed to be in slow motion at the same time. Magnus pulled his own shirt off in one move, and Alec helped him pull his shirt off, before welcoming Magnus' lips against his chest. He felt electric against Magnus' body, every time Magnus moved Alec's body moved as if to respond to the other man's touch. While Magnus hadn't been ready to take charge last night, he sure seemed to be in his right nature taking charge now. They had soon stripped down to their underwear and Magnus came down almost covering Alec with his own body, despite his lighter weight and smaller size. Alec knew he should feel safe and protected, but somehow the feeling of this kind of safety made him uneasy, and he tried to readjust himself under Magnus' embrace.

"Shit, what did I do?" Magnus noticed the uneasiness and got nervous suddenly. Alec reached up to cup Magnus' face with both hands.

"I'm sorry, I'm not used to this," he said and looked down at Magnus' arms set securely on each side of Alec's shoulders. Magnus' leaned over on the side, rolling halfway off Alec. He seemed to be contemplating something, and Alec was almost ready to let his nerves go and let Magnus be in charge, when the other man spoke.

"Do you want to be on top?" he asked, and Alec's gaze caught the nearly yellow eyes.

"I don't know," Alec said, realization hitting him hard. He had thought about it so many times, but he didn't want to force Magnus to do anything. Every time he looked or thought of the man, Alec had thought he would need to take care of Magnus, and he would need to be the one giving the other man a sense of security. Alec might not always seem the type, but he felt like the natural protector with just about anyone. He didn't like the word 'top' or 'dominant', because it send off a vibe of inequality in a relationship, but he couldn't help his own nature feeling the way he felt with others. Magnus seemed to study Alec's expression for a moment.

"I wouldn't mind," Magnus whispered.

"But you haven't…"

"Neither have you," he interrupted. Alec rolled over on top of Magnus, he brushed the man's hair away from his face and kissed his forehead.

"I need you to tell me to stop if I cross any kind of line. It doesn't matter when, you have to tell me?" Alec looked at Magnus' expression. He didn't look nervous anymore. Instead he looked like someone whose feelings had never been taken into consideration like this before. Magnus raised his lips to Alec's in a soft kiss.

"Thank you," he whispered against Alec's lips. He licked his lips after laying his head back down. Alec admired the man under him for a moment, unaware of where to start next. "I'll guide you," Magnus said and moved his hands down Alec's back, pulling him down. Alec felt hands in his boxer briefs and he rubbed against Magnus with the motion of the hands behind him. Alec kissed Magnus, while brushing his hand down the other man's underwear. He only had to do to Magnus what he knew he would enjoy himself, and it seemed to work. Magnus writhed under him, as Alec began to find a rhythm. It didn't take long, before Magnus was so hard Alec doubted he could get any harder, and so he pulled his underwear off and put Magnus into his mouth, imitating what he felt Magnus had done to him the first time. But instead of finishing up the way Alec had, Magnus stopped him just in time. "Stop!" Magnus moaned, and Alec's head jerked up. Magnus was panting, "I want to come with you… inside me." Alec blinked, before he continued to plant kisses on Magnus' body. Magnus was a gentle teacher; even if he had assured Alec that this position was new to him as well. He taught Alec how he needed to prepare Magnus, before going all the way. And when they were both ready to go all the way, Alec thought he would have to pull out again. Magnus grabbed the sheets under him into his fists, his face twisted into a mix of pain and pleasure and Alec froze in position while feeling Magnus slowly relax under him. When Magnus didn't say anything, Alec leaned down to kiss him gently on the cheeks, down his neck and his chest. After a moment, Magnus was ready, he let go of the sheets, and put his hands behind Alec's neck. Magnus guided Alec silently, telling him everything with his body and Alec replied with as much gentleness as he possibly could without shattering completely on top of the beautiful man. They found a steady pace, and Alec imagined it would have been better for both of them if Magnus had rolled over. But the first time wasn't about great sex, it was about intimacy and Alec felt the kind of intimacy he had always hoped for his first time, and he knew instantly how lucky he was, because not a lot of people would take their time to find the right fit and the right pace for their first time. It all ended in what he imagined to be ordinary bliss, as the first time should. Still, Alec realized what Magnus had meant that night weeks ago, when he told him about pleasuring others – although Alec felt pleasure himself, the sight of Magnus coming undone underneath him was just as satisfying.

Magnus brushed his hands down Alec's body, almost as if he wanted to get under his skin. Alec let himself fall down slowly on top of Magnus, softly caressing his chest, while catching his breath.

"Alec?" Magnus whispered.

"Mmh?" Alec hummed. He didn't dare to look up, afraid of what Magnus was going to say.

"I think I'm a bottom," he said. Alec looked up at him with a smirk, resting his chin on Magnus' chest. "Yeah, I'll definitely bottom for you any time," he reassured, when he looked down at Alec.

"You should know something…" Alec began.

"Oh, are you a bottom too?"

"I hate it when you say bottom," Alec finished his sentence.

"Catcher?" he suggested, and Alec wrinkled his nose with disapproval. "Receiver?"

"We talked about it, but do we have to talk about it still?"

"It's important to talk about sex if you want to improve?" Magnus suggested.

"Alright," Alec said, and rolled over to his side so he could get a better look at Magnus. "What do we need to improve?"

"I think you could be a bit more rough next time, now that I know what to expect," he smirked.

"I was planning on it," Alec felt his confidence rise, now that he knew Magnus was planning on them to have a 'next time'.

"Good," Magnus said and pulled Alec back on top of him.

"What, now?"

"Why not?" Magnus' grin told Alec that he knew exactly why not.

"I might need some time to recover," Alec chuckled.

"Fine, we'll take five," he smirked.

"That gives me just enough time to ask you something. You don't have to say yes, if you don't want to or you can't do it," Alec said, tracing a pattern on Magnus' chest with a finger.

"You're making me nervous, just ask me?"

"Clary has her first exhibition by the end of next week, and she asked us to come see her. All my friends will be there, and it will probably take a few days in my van, so I completely understand if you can't take the time off," Alec babbled. Magnus didn't say anything, and when Alec looked up at him it appeared he was searching for something in Alec's eyes. Alec rarely babbled, and when he did it was always because of Magnus.

"What happened to the confident guy I saw just a second ago? Of course I want to meet your friends. Nothing would make me happier than to see you happy, Alexander," Magnus said softly, and Alec felt his heart nearly burst. Knowing it would be too soon for the L-word, he leaned down and kissed Magnus' chest instead, right above where his heart was. "Does that mean you told your friends I'm your boyfriend?" Magnus smirked.

"I don't really need to tell my friends much, they are very good at drawing conclusions."

"Okay, how will you introduce me then, once we get there?" Now Magnus was just trying to make him say the word.

"Friend with benefits?" Alec offered, only teasing him.

"Ouch. I guess I deserved that one."

"No you didn't," Alec dropped his expression, and bit his lower lip absentmindedly. "I would love to tell them that you're my boyfriend?" Alec said it as a proposal, letting it be up to Magnus what to do with it. He seemed touched, and a smile reached his entire face.

"I would love that too."


	8. Chapter 8

**The Road Trip**

Alec had been counting the days for their road trip back home and the days until he got to introduce Magnus, his boyfriend, to his friends and family. He wasn't sure how much of his family would be there, except of course from Izzy, Max and Jace. His mother would probably be there as well, but his dad had left a while back and rarely visited. Alec hadn't had much writing done the past week, while preparing for the road trip. He had found places on the map, where they could camp out in his van so they wouldn't have to pay for motels. Magnus hadn't agreed to it at first, but they had compromised and decided to sleep in the van the first night, and then Magnus had found a cheap motel for the last night on the road. Alec wasn't sure if he was mostly looking forward to seeing his friends, or being cramped up in his old van with Magnus for two whole days. The trip didn't have to take two days, but they had decided it was the perfect way to get to know each other on a different level. Magnus had convinced Camille to look out for Chairman Meow, while they were gone for the much-extended weekend. She hadn't seemed too happy about it, but Magnus didn't want to bother the always-busy Catarina, and he definitely didn't think Woolsey was a good choice for a catsitter. "Woolsey isn't exactly a… cat person," Magnus had grimaced, leaving everything up for interpretation. Alec had almost suggested they bring the kitten with them, but he was also very certain that their own family cat, Church, would hate him just as much as he hated everyone else.

They were leaving the city as soon as Magnus got back from work. Alec had been packing all the stuff they needed, and he loved that Magnus trusted him enough to let him pack his clothes. Magnus had occasionally within the past week suggested Alec should wear some of his clothes, but most of the clothes Magnus owned were very tight and revealing and not Alec's style at all. Instead Alec had promised him that if he found something more his size and style, then he would most likely wear it. It had only taken Magnus a few hours after this suggestion to buy three new outfits for Alec, and he had to remind Magnus that he still didn't like to feel like Pretty Woman.

…

Magnus looked just as happy as Alec felt, when he entered the apartment after work. He went straight to Alec, who had just gathered all of their bags in a pile on the floor, and kissed him.

"Mmh," he breathed. "You know I miss those lips every time I go to work?"

"Yeah, I think you've mentioned it once or twice," Alec grinned like an idiot.

"Do I need to check that you got everything?" Magnus asked suspiciously.

"Three pairs of skinny jeans, two pairs of dress pants, three blazers, five dress shirts and three T-shirts," Alec listed.

"What about shoes?"

"Your favourite pair of crocodile skin shoes, the black ones and your hiking boots," Alec said.

"I have hiking boots? Do I need those?" Magnus wrinkled his nose.

"I want to show you the countryside, you shouldn't ruin your fancy shoes for a walk in the mud with me," Alec smirked. Magnus seemed to be unsure of whether to take him seriously and believe him. "I'm being serious. And if I didn't bring enough outfits for you, then I have plenty of jeans and flannel shirts back home for you to borrow," he teased. Magnus seemed to be fighting the urge to go through his bags.

"Flannel, huh?" he tried hard not to crack a smile at that image.

"Yeah. I think you would look great in a flannel shirt, worn out jeans, dark stubbles on your cheeks, just lounging in front of the fire in the family cabin," Alec said flirtatiously.

"Oh, so this is a fantasy you have?"

"It might be," Alec bit his lip.

"Your family has a cabin?"

"It's just outside of town, I use it sometimes when I need to be alone, and don't feel like staying at my sister's place," Alec shrugged. "We'll stay there for the weekend," he added, and Magnus' smile widened. It sent a flutter through Alec to see him this excited about their trip, and he leaned in to kiss Magnus again.

"We should get a move on then?" Magnus said brightly, and Alec carried their bags down to the van, while Magnus left notes for Camille to tell her where everything was.

Soon they were on the road and well on their way out of the big city. Free air and huge highways replaced the buildings and taxicabs, and Alec started to feel the freedom he hadn't realized he'd missed while in the city. Magnus had found an old mixed tape, because that was all they could play in Alec's van. It was full of 80s and 90s songs, and when Alec sometimes glanced over at the man next to him, he noticed he was quietly singing along. This was happiness, he thought. He'd never been very unhappy, but he realized now that he would never go back to who he was before he met this man. People had the power to change you, even if they didn't intend to do so and it wasn't always a bad thing. Sometimes people changed for the better, and Alec's life had changed into a happier one.

It was getting darker outside, when they found the place Alec had spotted on the map; a place he'd stopped by when he first went away. It was a parking lot near a forest, and at this time of the year no one else was staying here in vans. It had been a few months since Alec had last been here; the last time it had been warmer and a couple of other vans and RVs had been here.

"I feel like I'm about to be in a horror movie," Magnus said, when they'd made sleeping arrangements on the mattress in the back of the van. They each had a sleeping bag, which Magnus had complained about for quite a while, before settling down with a huge sigh.

"I could tell you a horror story? We used to do that around the campfire all the time, when we were younger and camping," Alec said.

"I would rather you didn't," Magnus sniggered.

"It's not that bad. A motel could be just as dangerous. Haven't you ever seen _Psycho_?"

"Thanks, now I'll have nightmares about the motel we're staying at tomorrow!" he exclaimed. Alec rolled over and put his arm around Magnus. It seemed to give him some comfort. Alec kissed Magnus' neck and cheek, but Magnus didn't want to turn his head, he was still mad about having to stay in a van. "You need to do better than that to get my mind of being brutally murdered out here," Magnus sulked. Alec rolled over on top of Magnus, sleeping bag and everything between them and began making out with his boyfriend, whose arms seemed to fight their way out of the sleeping bag. Alec didn't care to help him; he just kept his hands on both sides of Magnus' face to keep him in place. He forced his tongue against Magnus', exploring his mouth. Eventually he heard the zippers on the sleeping bags, and Magnus rolled them around until they were in between the thick fabric together. Alec ran his hands up and down Magnus' clothed body.

"Take your clothes off," Magnus demanded. The van was freezing without the sleeping bag around them.

"What?"

"That's your punishment for punishing me to a night out in a van," he challenged.

"It's not a punishment," Alec sighed, and leaned away from Magnus.

"That's what it feels like to me," Magnus looked away from Alec's eyes, which was probably a good thing, because Alec couldn't fight his own instinct to roll his eyes, despite the disappointment rising inside of him.

"Are you really mad?" Alec said in a low voice, because he hated that he had made Magnus do something he didn't want to do.

"I'm not mad, I'm just… I think it would brighten my mood to see you naked," he shrugged, and Alec sighed with relief. Magnus was only teasing him, and for once he had let it get to him, the fool that he was.

"Don't do that," he sniggered and shoved at Magnus. "What happened to not wanting to let me do anything that would give me a cold?"

"Honey, if you get a cold after tonight, it might as well be from all of the bacteria stuffed in this van, you brought that on yourself," Magnus suppressed a smile. Alec sat back for a moment, while thinking what he could do to brighten the mood.

"I think I have some bourbon in here somewhere, from Izzy's bar," he said, and began searching. This made Magnus sit up on the mattress. Alec quickly found the bottle, despite the mess in the back of his van. It was nearly full.

"I have an idea," Magnus began. "With every sip, one piece of clothing goes off?"

"I feel like we should have a game of cards for this?"

"Screw that, it will take too long and the alcohol will wear off before the next sip," Magnus said, and took the bottle from him. After the first sip, he took off one of his shirts. He had one of Alec's Henley shirts underneath it to keep warm. He held the bottle out for Alec, and Alec took a sip, before pulling off a sock. "Clever, aren't we?" Magnus frowned. Alec grinned with victory. The game continued until they were both naked, yet not even near being drunk.

"I think your game had a flaw."

"I know, we didn't have enough clothes on to keep warm from one sip each," Magnus acknowledged. Alec found all the blankets in the van and lay Magnus down underneath him and the pile of blankets and sleeping bags. "However, I realize now that we were quite stupid," Magnus said, as Alec began to feel the heat from the other body. He made a mental face-palm.

"Body heat," he chuckled. Magnus wrapped his arms around Alec and planted a kiss on his mouth. He had probably meant for it to be a soft goodnight's kiss, but lying naked on top of Magnus in the van like a couple of hobos did something for Alec. Alec kissed Magnus again, this time with a bit more passion, relaxing his body on top of the other man, causing Magnus' body to tense under him. Magnus breathed into Alec's mouth from the unexpected gesture. Alec's hands wandered down to Magnus' hips, and the man arched his back slightly to the touch. They moved along with each other, and Alec began grinding softly. Magnus' arms flew around Alec's back instinctively, pulling him closer, a soft moan escaping his lips. Alec kissed down his neck, down to his collarbone, while Magnus was twisting underneath him both enjoying the pleasure and throbbing for more. Magnus wrapped his legs around Alec's hips, inviting Alec to go beyond grinding.

"What about van germs?" Alec breathed.

"I think we've already been exposed," Magnus whispered, lifting his head to reach Alec for a kiss.

Alec pressed against Magnus' entrance, and Magnus groaned, trying to get Alec to kiss him again, but Alec wanted to look at the beautiful expressions Magnus made, as Alec prepared him. They soon found a rhythm that worked for both of them. Alec's panting was quiet only so he could hear the groans he caused in Magnus. Magnus kept clutching everywhere for Alec, trying to dig his nails into Alec's skin, but only causing superficial pain and making Alec go deeper, harder and faster still. Alec kissed him quickly, as he felt the man neared climax and looked down at his eyes as they rolled back in their sockets. Alec's orgasm followed shortly after and he collapsed on top of Magnus, thinking his body had never felt more exhausted than in that moment. None of them were cold anymore; their skin was burning hot against each other. Alec kissed Magnus' soft skin, brushing his lips against him carefully, while they both regained strength and air. He could hear Magnus' heart beat faster than what seemed normal, and he looked back into his eyes.

"Are you okay?" Alec wondered. Something sparkled in Magnus' eyes. Were those tears? "Did I hurt you?" Alec sat up instantly, shocked by himself. How would he not have noticed if Magnus was hurt? He'd stared into his beautiful eyes all the time, but maybe he had been absorbed by his own feelings and done something wrong.

"No," Magnus answered quickly, biting his lower lip. "My heart is racing," he breathed. Alec gave him half a smile, and lay back down against him.

"I know, I can feel it," he said and laid his hand over Magnus' chest.

They fell asleep like that on top of each other. Magnus' heartbeat was better than any lullaby, Alec thought, as he drifted off. They didn't wake up until the sun came through the windows in the van, and all heat had disappeared from their bodies. Alec felt Magnus shiver underneath him, and he got up to find his boyfriend some clothes.

"Here, we should get dressed before we really get a cold," Alec smiled softly. Something had changed in Magnus overnight, he seemed quiet, less energetic and it made Alec a bit anxious. He went out to pee behind the trees, and when he came back to the van Magnus had already seated himself in the passenger seat. "Are you all right?"

"Perfect," Magnus flashed a half-hearted smile. Alec ignored it for now, and started the van with a depressing feeling inside, and his mind making cruel insinuations about the change of Magnus' mood.

They drove in silence for a few hours, before they were ready to get something to eat. It was a semi-crowded road diner with a few rednecks inside. Some of them eyed Magnus and Alec as they walked into the diner. Alec tried to ignore it, but Magnus seemed to tense next to him. Alec thought he recognized why Magnus felt out of place suddenly – it was clear that he was wealthier and more fashionable than any of the town's people in here. Alec told him to find a place to sit, while he ordered something at the counter. When Alec had ordered omelette for both of them, he came down to find a tough looking biker approaching Magnus.

"Excuse me," Alec said and went around the man, to sit down across from Magnus. The guy eyed Alec shortly and left. Magnus and Alec was somewhat the same size, but Alec was aware that he appeared a bit tougher. Alec leaned over the table, and took Magnus' hand. "Was he bothering you?"

"No, he didn't get the chance. I thought he was going to mug me," Magnus said. "I can't believe New York feels safer than this rat-hole," he added. Alec chuckled. He had felt the same way, when he had first entered the big city. Magnus curled his fingers around Alec's, and Alec's mind relaxed a bit again.

Magnus, however, seemed to have lost his appetite and he stared more at his food than he ate of it. Alec wasn't sure if he should ask or if it would make everything worse. He still couldn't shake the feeling that Magnus was acting like this because of something he had done last night, even though he couldn't think of what it could have been. He hadn't been that rough, even if it had been more heated than the other times they'd had sex. Still, he thought he always did everything to make sure Magnus felt just as good.

…

Hours later they found the motel Magnus had chosen for them. It wasn't fancy, which Alec appreciated as he carried their bags into their room for the night. He had hoped a room would cheer Magnus up a bit, but no luck there apparently. Magnus sat down on the bed without even looking at the room.

"You would tell me if something was bothering you, right?" he asked carefully. Magnus chewed his lip, which was a trait he hadn't seen in him before.

"Of course I would," Magnus forced a smile. Alec sat down next to him.

"I hate to think it's something I did?" Alec tried. Now Magnus looked up at him in surprise.

"No, it's not. Never," he said.

"But you're sad?"

"Not sad, I…" Magnus stopped himself and stood up. Alec thought he knew then what it was.

"You're nervous?"

"What?" Magnus looked back at Alec.

"About meeting my friends?" Alec said. But Magnus was a people person, he shouldn't be nervous about a social gathering.

"No, I'm not nervous. I'm sure they are lovely. It's a bit embarrassing to even…" Magnus stopped himself again.

"Oh God, I knocked you up?" Alec tried to lighten the mood.

"I'm trying to be serious for a change!"

"Yeah, for a change. You're making _me_ nervous."

"I love you," Magnus said in a rushed voice. Alec stared at him. Magnus' eyes set in a soft and expectant expression. Had he heard him right?

"What?"

"I love you, dumbass. I nearly said it last night, that's why I felt embarrassed about it. I didn't want to be the kind of guy who told another guy that he loved him, while still inside me, but I nearly was," Magnus babbled. Alec cracked a smile. He felt so relieved. Magnus had been acting exactly the way Alec had, when he first began to fall in love with Magnus several weeks ago – no appetite, trapped inside his mind, a feverish kind of condition.

"I love you," he answered calmly, and Magnus mirrored his relief.

"Okay. Well, now I just feel awkward, and I never feel awkward," Magnus admitted.

"Why? You thought I didn't love you?"

"I knew you had a crush," Magnus shrugged, a smile threatening to come out.

"Get your ass into bed," Alec demanded.

"Are you going to fuck me again?" Magnus raised an eyebrow.

"No, I'm going to cuddle you all night," Alec snorted, as if it had been quite obvious. "You're going to need your beauty sleep if you're going to spend time with Izzy tomorrow."

"I'm not that tired," Magnus challenged, taking a few steps closer to Alec.

"Well, I'll need my beauty sleep, or she'll yell at me for having bags under my eyes." Alec pulled Magnus close to him by the shirt, and Magnus fell against him willingly. A touch of lips against lips was enough to drive Alec mad with passion at this moment, and he let the kiss deepen. _Magnus loves me,_ he thought to himself, _Magnus actually loves me_. It was all his mind could think about, as he let Magnus push him down onto the bed. They continued making out for what seemed like hours, lips touching, hands brushing, and sometimes they even forgot to get up for air.

"Gosh, I feel like a teenager," Alec said. It hadn't exactly been too long since he'd actually been a teenager, but still, he should have long gone through this phase. He supposed it didn't matter when you fell in love, if it was your first time or the fifth, if you were fifteen or thirty, it would still make you feel like madness grew inside of you, and you wouldn't be able to let it go.

"Gosh, that makes me feel old," Magnus breathed. Alec chuckled.

"Does that mean you're fine with cuddling for the rest of the night?" Alec had to admit, that holding Magnus in his arms or having Magnus hold him in his arms, was nearly as good at this point. Sex was still kind of new to him, and he didn't want to overdose on the activity. Most of all, he didn't want to be the cliché gay couple, who just boned all the time.

"I am absolutely fine with cuddling," Magnus said and settled into Alec's embrace. They were quiet for about two seconds, before Magnus spoke again. "But... could we cuddle in the nude?" Alec laughed.

"I think this motel room has more germs than my van," he said, when he was done laughing. "Of course, I would be stupid to let down the offer of seeing you naked. We could re-enact the famous Annie Leibovitz photo of John Lennon and Yoko Ono? You'll be John," Alec suggested, and looked at Magnus who looked like a demented elf.

"I love that you know it's an Annie Leibovitz photo, but wouldn't I be Yoko though?"

"Why?" Alec wondered.

"I'm Asian," he said. Alec blinked.

"You're Asian?" he teased with fake shock. Magnus grinned, and softly bumped his forehead against Alec's.

"Annie Leibovitz is one of my bigger role models," Magnus said.

"She's very talented," Alec acknowledged. Magnus planted a small kiss on Alec's neck. "But so are you," he added, and turned to look at the appreciating look on Magnus' face.

"You're just trying to make me say the words again," Magnus sniggered.

"Yes, that is the only reason why I would make such a silly compliment," Alec said sarcastically.

"I love you," Magnus said it anyway, and Alec couldn't help but smile. If he could have it his way, he would have Magnus shout the words from the rooftop of his building in New York so the entire city could hear that Magnus Bane was in love with Alec Lightwood. But he would settle for a whisper in his ear for now.

…

Alec couldn't remember a time he'd felt more peaceful in his sleep. He only woke up, when he heard a clicking sound somewhere by the foot of the bed. He looked up and found Magnus staring at him trough a camera lens. The other man smiled, as he watched Alec wake up.

"Why?" Alec complained, the peaceful feeling slowly dissolving as he realized his sleepy face was now captured and kept in one of Magnus' old cameras. He could tell by the sound of it that it wasn't a digital camera, where you could erase one piece of evidence without ruining the rest of the film.

"Don't worry, it was just the right angle," Magnus assured him. Alec peeked from under the pillow, down at himself.

"Oh, so you got a piece of my ass in the frame?" he teased.

"You'll have to wait and see."

"I wish you'd brought a digital camera," Alec groaned.

"I did bring one. But all that talk last night inspired me. I should have brought an instant camera," he said a bit disappointed.

Alec rolled out of bed, not ready to discuss whether it was a good idea to take pictures of him as a way to wake him up or not, while still a bit sleepy.

"I need coffee," he sighed. Magnus went to put down his camera on the table, and came around with a paper cup of coffee.

"I already got you a cup. The office was already open, when I went to get my camera in the van, so I brought you a cup," Magnus handed Alec the paper cup. The gesture brightened Alec's mood, and he felt himself slowly emerge from the sleepy state he was in.

"God, I love you," Alec breathed into the coffee.

"I love you too," Magnus kissed Alec's cheek.

"I was talking to the coffee," he teased.

"You're the worst," Magnus said and turned to walk away, but Alec caught his hand and kissed his knuckles, before letting him go. "We should get back on the road, so we won't be late for Clary's exhibition," he smiled.

"Yes, definitely," Alec agreed and gathered his stuff so they could leave for a few more hours on the road.

 **(Thanks for the reviews, they help me get an idea of what I should continue to work into the story. Keep them coming, I love to hear your opinions!)**


	9. Chapter 9

**Never Have I Ever**

Alec pulled his van up beside the family cabin. They needed to change into something a bit more formal for Clary's exhibition. And of course Magnus wanted to make a good first impression, which was really ridiculous, because Alec thought he looked stunning in the skinny jeans and blue shirt he was wearing at the moment.

Alec found the key in the plant hanging from the roof, where it usually was, and unlocked the door for Magnus to go inside and have a look, while Alec got the bags. Magnus seemed to be in awe, when Alec joined him. He was staring at the wood panels, the fireplace and everything inside the small cottage. Everything something you would expect to find in an old cabin like this, but Magnus had probably never been to one of these older models before.

"It's kind of romantic, isn't it?" Magnus asked.

"I often go here to write," Alec explained.

"That explains the chick lit vibe you sometimes give me," Magnus winked.

Alec went to get a fire started, because at this time of the year it was freezing inside the cabin. The place couldn't keep warm without the fireplace. It would be out when they got back, but it would still have had time to heat up the place a bit.

"Wow," Magnus sighed. Alec looked back to find Magnus sitting in the armchair, looking in his direction.

"What?"

"I never thought I would get so turned on by the masculine lumberjack look, but here we are," Magnus bit his lower lip and gave Alec a flirtatious look. A short nervous laugh escaped all the way from his stomach. It wouldn't be a much different feeling had he brought Magnus home to see his childhood bedroom. Alec ran a hand through his hair, as a nervous habit.

"We should probably get dressed," he said. Magnus sighed with disappointment. "So we won't be late," Alec added.

They walked into the bedroom and Magnus unpacked all of his clothes to decide, while Alec found an outfit at the top of his bag; an outfit Magnus had gotten him earlier this week. It was a sort of casual suit. He turned his back to Magnus, and got out of his clothes, and then he felt hands coming around him. Magnus' warm lips touched the back of Alec's neck, and he felt the other man's hands wander downward.

"What are you doing?" Alec breathed.

"I think it's pretty obvious," Magnus whispered behind Alec's ear. His hand brushed over Alec's underwear. "I think you have enough time for a handjob, you'll just have to be quick," he added, and bit down on Alec's earlobe. Alec moaned, waiting for Magnus' hand to remove the fabric between them. "And I can tell you're already getting into it." Alec could practically feel Magnus' smirk against his neck, and he turned his head to kiss him through moans, while Magnus' hand worked its way in quick motions and a steady rhythm. The odd sensation that went through his body at times like this was something he had quickly learned to welcome, and he felt Magnus trying to hold down his chest from rising and falling with his free hand. He could feel Magnus getting into the excitement as well, as he pressed against Alec's back. Feeling Magnus' excitement grow pushed him over the edge, and he came in Magnus' hand, while breathing his boyfriend's name. Magnus moved away from him, found a towel in his bag and grinned all over his face, when Alec looked back at him. He took a step closer to Magnus, wanting to do the same for him, but he held his hand up to stop Alec.

"We'll be late," he smiled softly.

"But…" Alec began, but was cut short from a soft kiss against his lips.

Alec knew he had been too easy, when they were already late for the exhibition, but he often found that he had a difficult time saying no to Magnus.

"We'll just save some for later," Magnus said and got the rest of his clothes on.

Alec got dressed quickly, and Magnus ran a hand through Alec's hair shortly trying to rearrange it, but gave up. Alec never did do much about his hair anyway.

They took the van into town, because it was too far to walk, and they were already an hour late. It seemed it didn't matter much that they were late, because the place was still packed with people. Alec felt a bit proud that all these people were here for one of his friends. That's when he noticed Izzy in the crowd, she screamed his name and came crashing into him so hard he needed to take a few steps back to balance them both. Jace and Clary followed her, but they were less aggressive about their greetings and settled for a regular hug.

"Congrats Clary, the place looks great and… crowded," Alec smiled. "I'm sorry we're late," he added with an apologetic shrug. Izzy looked at her watch.

"An hour late, Alec. Was it the traffic?" Izzy raised an eyebrow. Alec felt his cheeks flush.

"Yeah, traffic," he said and cleared his throat. "Everybody, this is Magnus."

Everybody began with the polite greetings, and Magnus smiled at each one of them, already knowing who everybody was – except from Simon, who came balancing with three glasses of champagne.

"They were all out at the table, so I had to go to the kitchen and tell them to get on top of it," he said and handed Izzy and Clary a glass.

"Thanks, Simon," Clary smiled. Simon noticed Magnus and his expression brightened.

"You must be Magnus! I'm Simon," he said and shook Magnus' hand.

"It's nice to meet all of you. Clary, I hope you don't mind, but I brought my camera. I thought I would capture a few moments throughout the day, if that's okay with you?" Magnus held up his camera to show her.

"Of course, I would love that. I'm a big fan," she said and flushed a bit.

"I can tell I'm going to be a fan of yours as well," Magnus said, and looked at the walls with all of Clary's paintings and drawings.

"Where's Max?" Alec asked.

"He's in the back, he got bored so he went to read comics," Izzy informed. Alec squeezed Magnus' hand.

"I'll go say hi to him," Alec said to Magnus.

"Magnus can stay with us," Izzy said quickly, and leaned in to whisper to Alec, "I noticed the other day that you hadn't told Max about Magnus, when I accidentally mentioned him, so maybe you should go tell him first?"

Alec hadn't even thought about telling Max about his boyfriend, most of all because he hadn't exactly told anyone that Magnus was his boyfriend. All he'd talked about was his feelings for Magnus, and that wasn't really something you talked to your nerdy thirteen-year-old brother about. But he also thought it was odd that Izzy hadn't told him anything about where Alec had been spending his time the past few months.

"You should stay, take some photos," Alec assured Magnus. Magnus leaned in to give Alec a quick kiss, and Alec froze. Magnus didn't seem to notice Alec's reaction, or he was hiding it. Izzy sent Jace a look though, and Alec couldn't help but think she was silently warning him not to comment. Alec let go a single nervous chuckle, and left for the back to find his younger brother.

Max didn't notice Alec, until he sat down next to him. A huge smile spread across his entire face and he embraced Alec.

"How's it going, Max?"

"Izzy said you were coming today, and that you brought a friend?" Max smiled.

"Actually," Alec began, "I haven't told anyone yet, so you're the first one to know that I brought my boyfriend." It was technically true; he hadn't told anyone that they called each other boyfriends. But he also knew that Max would feel proud and special for being the first to know.

"I figured," Max shrugged.

"You figured?"

"I figured, when Izzy told me you would bring your _friend_ Magnus," he emphasized the word 'friend' in a way that Alec recognized Izzy would do as well, when she was insinuating something.

"I suppose Izzy figured it out too," Alec sighed.

"You look different," said Max.

"Magnus helped me pick out my clothes today."

"Not just your clothes. You look… happy," Max said, and Alec's heart nearly broke. He hadn't been aware that he didn't look happy before, especially not in front of Max.

"I am happy," Alec smiled softly. "What about you?"

"I'm fine. Clary and Simon brought me to a new bookstore downtown the other day. It was pretty cool. I got three new comics and a book on sale," Max began to explain about the new comic he was reading, and Alec remembered to smile at the right time, while his brother spoke about zombies and science fiction. None of them noticed Magnus approaching, before he snapped a few pictures of them.

"Max, meet my boyfriend," Alec smiled at Magnus. Max got to his feet and shook Magnus' hand.

"It's nice to meet you, Magnus."

"You too. Great handshake you got there," Magnus smiled, Max still shaking his hand and appeared to pull Magnus closer to him.

"Remember that if you ever hurt my brother, I will find out where you live and I will haunt you for the rest of your life," Max said in a low voice, before letting go of Magnus. "Now I'm going to get a snack. Later," he said and disappeared out into the room. Magnus turned to Alec, who was just as stunned as Magnus looked.

"He reads a lot of books," Alec shrugged apologetically.

"It's okay, I'm starting to get used to your family threatening me," Magnus chuckled.

"What?!"

"Izzy said something about whips and axes," Magnus shrugged with amusement.

"For fucks sake," Alec sighed.

"Hey, language. Anyway, I think it's kind of endearing how protective they are of you. None of my friends have ever been that protective of me," Magnus shrugged.

"None that you've witnessed," Alec raised an eyebrow to remind him of Woolsey's warning.

"Oh shit, I forgot. Well, that's what friends are for, right?"

"Except my friends have never been very protective of me," Alec argued. Magnus stepped closer.

"Maybe because they know the only thing they need to protect you from is your own heart?" Magnus whispered, playing with the collar of Alec's blazer.

"That's deep," Alec teased. "Are you writing this shit down? You should tweet about that."

"You are a horrible person," Magnus smiled and planted a kiss on Alec's lips.

"It keeps me awake at night," Alec mumbled against Magnus' lips.

"I'll give you something else to keep you awake at night," he flirted, and they both broke it off, when they heard someone clear their throat behind them.

"Jocelyn!" Alec exclaimed in surprise. "Uhm, this is my boyfriend, Magnus." The woman looked slightly amused at the scene. "This is Clary's mom."

"I know you," Magnus said.

"You bought some of my paintings a few years ago," Mrs. Fray remembered.

"I should have known Clary was your daughter. She really takes after her mother," Magnus complimented.

"It's been so long. Are you still in photography?" Jocelyn wondered.

"I have my own studio now," Magnus said and handed her one of his cards.

"And you brought your camera. I'm sure Clary would love to see some photos of today," she said, and they began talking, so Alec thought he would go back and find his friends.

…

Alec got a glass of champagne and found his friends grouped together beside one of the walls. Clary's brother Sebastian had joined them and Alec nodded hello to the guy. Sebastian had been away for work on and off the past two years after he'd graduated. Alec had never really gotten to know him much, but Jace seemed to have fun with him sometimes, and Clary loved her brother. Jace had his arm around Clary's back. Izzy and Simon was standing shoulder against shoulder, playfully nudging each other once in a while.

"You threatened my boyfriend?" Alec accused, as soon as he reached the group. Izzy made a squealing sound, which couldn't be considered normal behavior for the event.

"You called him your boyfriend," she said.

"Because he is… my boyfriend," Alec retorted.

"He just needed to be assured that no one hurts a Lightwood and gets away with it," she shrugged.

"Lucky for you, he thought it was 'endearing'."

"Oh man, that is by far the worst insult I've ever gotten," she exclaimed, and changed the subject. "Have you settled into the cabin?"

"Mmhmm," Alec said, and swallowed a huge sip of his champagne. Izzy suppressed a giggle, and Jace wiggled his eyebrows at Alec. "Oh grow up, so we had a little… fun, before we got here. It's not like you guys are such saints," Alec challenged.

"We've never been late for an event," Izzy shrugged, looking at Simon, who nodded in agreement. Jace looked guilty though, and Alec remembered plenty of times where Jace and Clary had disappeared from events and come back with ruffled hair and clothes. "Anyway, we need to celebrate tonight at the pub. Y'all better not be late for that," Izzy warned.

"Isn't it just going to be us?" Alec wondered.

"Exactly, just the seven of us, so if anyone is late it will not go unnoticed," she added. "We all want to get to know Magnus better."

"Oh, well you should have just said so then," Alec smiled at his sister.

…

"You don't need any more makeup, you look great," Alec sighed, as Magnus was getting ready for the afterparty at Izzy's pub.

"I want to look my best. Your sister seems difficult to impress," Magnus said from the bathroom. Alec let himself fall down into the armchair in the living room. It was a small cabin, despite his big family, and he could easily hear Magnus talking from the bathroom. Alec was nearly certain that Izzy wasn't the reason why he wanted to dress to impress. Magnus rarely expressed that he cared what anyone else thought of him.

"She gave me a speech about being late, so it would probably be worse if we were late for her little party than it would if you didn't have enough makeup on," Alec tried.

"You said the pub was closer than the place of Clary's exhibition?"

"Yeah?"

"So it will only take about ten minutes, right?"

"Right?"

"We have plenty of time," Magnus stated.

Alec had to admit that when Magnus was finally done getting ready, he looked stunning. Alec had never really thought glitter and makeup were suitable for men, but that was only because he'd always thought the types of people who wore that kind of makeup were feminine, and he wasn't exactly attracted to much femininity. But Magnus didn't have the same kind of feminine look you would think. His masculinity worked alongside the feminine touch of makeup and glitter, and it only made him slightly androgynous. Magnus grinned, when he saw Alec's expression.

"Do you need a cold shower?" he asked, and Alec drew in a breath.

"Sorry I yelled at you. You look great," Alec said, cursing himself for not using a better word than 'great'. He was supposed to be a writer; he could do way better than 'great'. How about 'spectacular'? Or 'beautifully handsome'? Magnus was wearing a burgundy suit with black collar and a black shirt, his crocodile shoes and the glitter in his hair had a red tint to it. And Alec didn't even know where to begin with the perfection of the man's makeup. "I think Izzy would still be impressed if we were late," Alec said, when he remembered how to speak again.

"If we leave now we will be five minutes early?" Magnus said. Alec bit his lip, thinking what he could do with five minutes if they waited. But then he decided it wouldn't be nearly enough time to start anything, when his boyfriend looked like this, and they left for the pub. On the way there he was caught up in his mind, trying not to let it get to him that he enjoyed his boyfriend like this. He had always thought it was ridiculous how guys sexualized and objectified women; it wasn't any better to do the same with men. He was brought out of his pondering, when Magnus placed a hand on his thigh. Alec started a bit, but turned to give Magnus a soft smile. "What are you thinking about?" he wondered.

"You," Alec whispered. Magnus smiled with confidence, and Alec wondered if Magnus could feel how important and special he was to him. He wouldn't have brought him home to his friends if he didn't feel this way about the man, and he hoped Magnus knew.

…

Alec noticed his sister looking at Magnus with awe for a split second, and then she was back to using her poker face.

"It's a weekend, shouldn't you open tonight?" Alec wondered, when he realized everything was closed off for strangers.

"I wanted to do something special for Clary, and you're home, so we should celebrate alone, like the old days," Izzy said. Alec thought back at the old days, when Izzy had first started working here, it was before she owned the place, but she would still sneak them all into the back, and they could party back there with a bottle of whatever she could find that no one would notice missing. "Magnus looks rather sharp tonight," she added in a whisper, so only Alec heard her. He couldn't hide his satisfaction of her remark.

"I know," Alec smiled.

Izzy brought out a few bottles of different kinds of alcohol and they began to drink. They had only had a few glasses and small conversations, when she suggested they play _Never Have I Ever_.

"Aren't we a bit too old for that game?" Magnus wondered.

"I don't care. It gives us a chance to get to know each other better."

"Scared you're going to lose, Bane?" Jace teased.

"Oh, I know I'm going to lose this game," Magnus admitted. Alec took a huge sip from his scotch, trying to suppress the stabbing sensation in his chest, which he knew didn't come from the booze. Magnus had tried so many things before he met Alec, and he couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy.

"I'll start," Izzy said and continued. "Never have I ever kissed a girl." Everybody was drinking except Clary and Alec. Izzy grimaced at the two. "Seriously?"

"Never," Clary shrugged.

"But you went to college?"

"I had a boyfriend," Clary reminded her. "Never have I ever had sex in a car," Clary said. Magnus and Alec looked at each, while drinking. Izzy took a sip, and so did Sebastian. Everyone seemed to notice the look Alec shared with his boyfriend, thinking back on the other night in the van.

"They totally did it in the van," Izzy said to Simon in a low voice, but not so low that the others couldn't hear it. "Magnus, your turn."

"Never have I ever…" Magnus was thinking for a moment.

"He can't come up with something he hasn't done," Jace grinned.

"It doesn't matter. I have done the one I used," Izzy said.

"…peed in a park," Magnus said, and everybody was drinking.

"Boring," Izzy snorted and looked at Alec.

"Come on, you know I'm bad at this game," Alec complained. Izzy just stared at him, waiting for him to say something. "Okay. Never have I ever… had sex with a girl." All the guys except from Alec had a drink.

"Never have I ever had a threesome," Simon said.

"See, that's how you play this game," Izzy commented. Magnus and Jace took a sip, and everybody eyed them.

"I've even had a foursome," Magnus admitted without shame.

"Really? How does that even work?" Simon wondered.

"It doesn't," Magnus admitted and everyone laughed. Now it was Jace's turn to explain. Clary looked at him with a peculiar look on her face, and he pulled his shoulders up in a shrug.

"I needed a distraction to get over you. One girl at a time simply wasn't enough," he admitted, and Clary seemed to accept that.

"As long as one girl is enough now," she smiled. Jace leaned in to kiss her, and everyone exclaimed 'aww' in unison.

The game went on for about an hour, and everyone was getting pretty tipsy. Alec was surprised that Magnus wasn't tipsier than he was, because he had been drinking during the entire game. He would have been right about losing, had they bothered to keep score.

Simon was lying on one of the benches in a booth, half-passed out. Sebastian had left a while back, because he had another 'party' to attend to. Clary had her head on Jace's shoulder, while Izzy was talking with Magnus and everyone was listening, because she was asking him about his work. Even with this much alcohol in his blood, Magnus didn't fail to light up when talking about his passion.

"Well, _I_ think it's pretty cool that you both know Raphael Santiago. You meet so many important public people, but it's important to also bring attention to smaller industries that have been less accepted before," Izzy explained in her drunkenness.

"Who's Raphael Santiago?" Jace wondered. Alec blushed, and Magnus winked at him.

"We should invite him to our next party. Do you think Jace would be his type?"

"I don't think you want him at your party. He's got... a big personality," Alec said, while Magnus said, "I don't think anyone is really his type."

"Please, I'm everybody's type," Jace joked. Clary slapped his arm in a loving way.

"Sure you are," she mumbled sarcastically, half asleep.

"She's passed out," Jace shrugged. Clary wasn't passed out so much that she couldn't still be sarcastic, which was one of the things Alec actually liked the most about her. She was one of the few people who knew how to give Jace some of his own medicine once in a while, and still be cute about it. "So does anyone want to hear the story of the time I ran naked through town?" Jace changed the subject.

"No one wants to hear that story, Jace," Alec sighed. Izzy covered her eyes with frustration, and Magnus raised his eyebrows.

"I can probably top that headline," Magnus said. Alec looked at his boyfriend sideways.

"Please tell me you're joking?"

"I was once banned from Peru," he smirked.

"You got banned from a country?!" Alec exclaimed, and Jace chuckled.

"Okay, that headline wins. Are you going to tell the story?"

"It's a long story, and I can tell that everyone is tired, so maybe we should call it a night?" Magnus suggested.

"Good idea," Alec got to his feet, because he didn't think now was the time for his boyfriend to tell stories to his friends about illegal activities or whatever had gotten him banned from a country. Everyone agreed to call it a night, and Alec and Magnus had to walk back to the cabin, since no one was able to drive. Magnus took Alec's hand on the way.

"Are you mad at me?" Magnus wondered.

"Why would you not tell me you got banned from a country? How is that not something you think is important to tell me? Or were you just showing off to Jace?" Alec demanded. Magnus stopped walking, and looked at Alec for a moment, while he appeared to be contemplating his words.

"I was just trying to shut him up," Magnus shrugged. "How would someone get banned from a country?" He seemed to fake a laugh, and Alec wasn't sure whether he believed him or not, but he knew that he wanted to believe it.

"Okay," Alec said, and began walking again. They had only been walking for two minutes, when Magnus looked at him with a smug expression and reached for something inside his jacket – It was a bottle. "Did you steal from my sister?"

"I paid extra for this, she just doesn't know it yet. At least not until she finds the hundred dollar bill I left for her," he shrugged and sipped at the bottle.

"That bottle is worth at least hundred-and-fifty," Alec said.

"It's not even half-full," Magnus said, holding the bottle up in front of Alec's eyes. He chuckled and took the bottle from his boyfriend.

"Why do I get the feeling this is all part of some mischievous plan?"

"Because it is," Magnus said, and walked faster towards the cabin. It took them a bit more than thirty minutes to get to the cabin by foot, but they had fun drinking while walking and Alec had completely forgotten about Magnus little "fake story" about Peru by the time they reached the cabin.

"I'm going to brush my teeth. Don't fall asleep while I'm in the bathroom," Alec warned through his drunkenness. He hadn't realized how drunk he was until he got inside and the entire cabin was kind of spinning. Alec took his time brushing his teeth, and getting ready for what he wanted to be an intense make out session. He decided, while trying to keep his balance in the bathroom, that he probably shouldn't even try to have sex while this drunk, even if he had considered that as well. But everything changed when he came back out into the living room, and saw Magnus sprawled in front of the fire, fast asleep and wearing only one of his flannel shirts and boxer briefs. Alec had to suppress a laugh so he wouldn't wake him up. Instead of waking him up, Alec found a bunch of blankets and pillows and settled down next to his boyfriend in front of the fire.

…

Alec woke up to a set of eyes staring at him. Magnus was still wearing what he had put on last night, before falling asleep in front of the fire, but the fire was now out. The look on Magnus' face was so entirely forced and dorky, yet completely endearing and somewhat sexy. Alec leaned up to kiss him, and Magnus grimaced.

"Morning breath," he explained.

"Sorry."

"Oh, what the hell," Magnus shrugged casually, and pulled Alec back in for a heavy kiss on the lips. "How do you like my new look?" he wondered, coming up for air.

"Very chic and sexy," Alec grinned.

"That's exactly what I was going for!" the other man smiled charmingly. "I'm sorry I fell asleep last night."

"You better be," Alec joked.

"How are you going to punish me?" Magnus challenged. Alec thought about it for a moment. By the look on Magnus face, he could tell he was expecting sexual advantages, so instead Alec jumped to his feet.

"We're going to shoot arrows today," he said.

"Please tell me that's going to be as dirty as it sounds?"

"That depends," Alec smirked.

"On what?"

"On whether you wear the right shoes," Alec said.

"I should know when to take your words more literally," Magnus sighed and fell down on the floor, face first into a pillow.

"Come on, it'll be fun. It's my favorite activity."

"Shooting arrows?" Magnus looked up at him and raised his eyebrows.

"Archery. It's the only thing I could ever make my dad proud of."

"I'm sure that's not true," Magnus said with a soft expression.

"I'm pretty sure it is. But he stopped bragging about his son, who hunts with bow and arrow, when he found out I was gay," Alec shrugged, and Magnus let go a laugh.

"Okay, I'm convinced. Let's go shoot some arrows together," Magnus winked, and got to his feet.


	10. Chapter 10

**The Bonfire**

After a few hours of Alec trying to convince the others to do archery with the two of them, Simon had finally said 'sure, why not?' and agreed to go with them, as the last person Alec had asked. He knew Simon was the only other one of his friends who liked archery, so it made sense. Within the same few hours, he had also been busy convincing Magnus that the different outfits he kept trying on, were not suitable for hunting. Magnus had pointed out that he had never shot an arrow before, and therefore he would need training before even considering hunting. Finally, he went with a pair of skinny jeans and the flannel shirt he had found in Alec's closet, along with the hiking boots he'd brought for him as well. He looked kind of sexy and lumberjack-esque, and Alec had to hide his amusement.

Luckily, he still had his practice boards with pictures of wild animals outside, in the back of the garden near the forest. They had to start with the practice first, before going out into the forest. It would be a disaster if they shot someone. First, Alec had to assure Magnus that, except from the board of a blackbear, there weren't any bears near the cabin or in the forest around it.

Then they thought they would begin practice, while waiting for Simon to arrive, and went out to the back with all of Alec's gear. He had had a few bows over the years, and Magnus borrowed one of the older ones, from when Alec was still a beginner. Magnus' stance was sloppy, and Alec went to stand behind him and raised his boyfriend's arms slightly, telling him how to get the best aim. They probably looked like a cliché, because they were interrupted when someone whistled behind them. Simon and Jace were approaching them, while smirking.

"Seems like you're doing well without us?" Jace noted.

"I'm trying to teach Magnus," Alec said casually.

"Sure, sure."

"So you decided to come after all?" Alec raised an eyebrow.

"I told him we should make it guy's day," Simon explained.

"And I told him he should have switched with Izzy then," Jace shrugged. Jace caught the sight of the old boards Alec's dad had made him a while back. They used to creep him out, but he had gotten used to them by now, even if he had long considered throwing them out, but couldn't seem to get it done. "You still have those?" Jace grimaced.

"Yeah, so?"

"I thought you were going to throw them out, after the prick disowned you?" he continued, and Alec sighed. He had told Magnus the story, but Jace was good at exaggerating things at times.

"What?" Magnus exclaimed.

"He didn't disown me. He's just… narrow-minded?" Alec tried.

"He left the state!"

"You need to revisit the description of 'disown'," Alec sighed at his friend's drama. He hadn't kicked Alec out, he hadn't done much actually, he hadn't said much to Alec after he caught him kissing a guy.

"Refuse to acknowledge or maintain any connection with," Jace said it like a quotation. Alec knew he had something about dictionaries, and he probably had most definitions memorized. "Synonyms – abandon, turn one's back on, disinherit," Jace continued, and Alec felt his face turn red with anger suddenly. Jace noticed and stopped himself. "Oh shit, Alec I'm sorry. I thought you knew!" Jace called after him, since Alec was already way on his way back to the cabin. He slammed the door behind him, it made the entire cabin rattle as an effect, and he went to sit in the armchair, while sulking like never before. Could his dad really have cut him out of his will? Then he had been more serious about his abandonment than Alec had first thought. Alec had thought it would blow over, once he had had some time to think and calm down. Of course, three years' time to 'think' something over was quite long. He didn't care about his father's money or anything he owned, obviously, but it was the emotions of hurt and rejection that got to him. After a few minutes alone, Jace came inside and sat down on the sofa.

"Alec, I can't tell you how sorry I am," he said.

"It's not your fault my dad doesn't wasn't anything to do with me," he shrugged.

"No, it's all his fault."

"I really thought he would get over it," Alec admitted.

"He might still, but the question is – would you forgive him if he finally did?"

"Of course I would. People grow all the time. I wouldn't blame anyone for decisions they made in the past. It wouldn't be fair," he felt angry that Jace would even question him like this. When he looked up at Jace, he noticed Magnus standing in the doorway with a soft expression of kindness.

"You're a much better person than I am then, not that it should surprise anyone," Jace admitted.

"Maybe we should just do something else today?" Magnus offered, as Simon appeared behind him as well.

"I have an idea," Alec felt a smirk on his face, when he thought of it. Jace knew immediately what he was thinking of, and they both exclaimed "bonfire" at the same time.

"A what now?" Simon wondered.

"We're going to burn the boards my dad made me. If he doesn't want me to own anything of his, then we should burn it," Alec said and got to his feet.

"Aren't we staying in his cabin?" Magnus tried to object, probably fighting the image of four guys burning down a smaller house in the middle of nowhere. Alec took his hand and stepped outside, pointing at the name on the cabin. "Trueblood?"

"My mom's maiden name. This has gone down two generations of Truebloods. So technically it belongs to my mom," Alec smiled. Magnus tried to hide his relief.

"Bonfire it is then," he cheered and they all went to make arrangements.

The girls, Sebastian and Max would join them later, bringing marshmallows and whatever they could find to roast on the fire. And of course Izzy would bring beer and wine. She was entirely up for burning the things Alec once received as nice presents from their father.

…

"I can't believe he would cut me off like that," Alec said, when him and Magnus was cutting the boards in smaller pieces – Alec probably a bit more aggressive in his action.

"I can't believe a shithead like your father raised such a reasonable and loveable person like you," Magnus contributed.

"Well, he basically didn't. He often worked anyway. Now that I think about it, he probably never even liked any of us."

"He sounds like a complicated man?"

"Yeah, well… we were raised mostly by our mother, and when she was off with him at work, our neighbour Hodge looked after us. He's the one who actually got me into literature. He had this small library in his house, and I could just sit there for hours," Alec felt nostalgic suddenly. He hadn't thought about Hodge for a while now. "He had a parrot," Alec let go a laugh as a result of the memory of Jace and the parrot. Jace always thought the parrot was spying on them, but Alec had never heard it say a single word.

"That explains quite a lot then," Magnus smiled, "why you are the person you are today, and not like your father."

"He used to say that Hodge was weak," Alec snorted at the less pleasant memory, and tore apart another piece of a board with a bear on it. "He wasn't weak at all. He was ill."

"Oh," Magnus smile dropped, when he noticed the past tense.

"He had depression or bipolar disease or some such thing. At times he wouldn't even leave his house, but as kids we never thought much of it, because we would spent time inside in his library anyway," Alec shrugged. Magnus appeared to already know what might have happened to Hodge, at least Alec thought so from his sombre expression. "When I was eighteen he took his own life," Alec explained.

"I'm sorry. I wish I could have met the man who taught you to use your passion," Magnus said. "I will have to settle for your mother then."

"Nice try," Alec chuckled.

"What, is she awful too?" Magnus raised his eyebrows in disbelief.

"No, she's alright. But… I don't know. She's never met a boyfriend before."

"Because you've never had any to show off?" Magnus offered.

"Okay. Maybe we can stop by her place tomorrow morning before we leave," Alec agreed, and Magnus smiled at him with victory written all over his face.

…

"I'm so sorry I didn't tell you," Izzy said to Alec, when they had finally gotten the fire started. The guys hadn't been able to start it, so the girls came to their rescue. The material the boards were made of wasn't easily flammable, but Izzy had something to get it started and along with twigs and paper they finally got it fired up. Alec was now admiring the view of his childhood practice going up in flames. Sure, his dad had taught him the way of the arrow, but the memories of the two of them practicing together all seemed to fade in comparison to the past three years of Alec's life as a typical gay son to a typical homophobic father.

Fortunately, they had a lot of fun keeping the fire alive, drinking beer and roasting sausage and marshmallows over the fire. Quickly, no one seemed to remember that they were burning Alec's so-called childhood, but instead they seemed to go back to the way they were when they were all in high school, sneaking out to drink beer some deserted place.

"Remember Eric's van?" Izzy said, while they were all reminiscing.

"Oh gosh, he was clueless! He never knew all the things we did when he wasn't in the van," Simon put a hand before his eyes. Alec quietly explained to Magnus that Eric was one of Simon's friends from high school, who he had been in a band with. The van had always been for band purposes only, and Simon kept coming up with excuses to borrow the van for "band purposes". One time he had even convinced Eric that he needed the van to transport his bicycle to the place of their next gig, so they could go together and he could just take his bike afterwards, because he wasn't going home but was going to see a "groupie". Alec imagined that whenever Eric heard the word "groupie" then enough was said to convince him. Of course, Eric had been curious when Simon's bike wasn't at the place of their gig, so Simon had to fake it stolen. It had been a complete mess and Simon couldn't use his bike for several months, until he was certain Eric wouldn't remember how it looked like and he could say that his mom had finally saved enough money for a new one very similar to the old bike. In reality, they had borrowed the van and gone to the beach without Eric, because despite everything he was a bit of a tool. They had had a minor beach party and slept in the van. It was the night of Alec's first kiss with the perfect stranger, who he never saw again afterwards. It was also a time, when Jace had been in love with Clary and therefore tried to erase those feelings with two other girls in the back of Eric's van, while Clary and Simon was making out in the sand.

"I have an idea," Izzy said and went into the cabin, when everyone was done telling stories about Eric's van. She came out shortly after with a few pieces of paper and pens. "We each write a memory, something or someone we need to leave behind us and throw it into the flames?" she suggested.

"Brilliant," Magnus smiled, and took a piece of paper for himself and one for Alec standing next to him.

Alec wrote down a memory he had of his father and him – it was the happiest he had of him. Alec was about eight and Robert had taken him fishing in their small boat on the lake. He had taught Alec to be quiet, and thinking back now he knew the silence was one of their major problems, but it had helped him catch a big fish. The memory was also the reason why Alec took Max out to fish or sail on the lake once in a while, because he knew his dad wouldn't do it anymore. And instead of being quiet when they were out fishing, Max kept rambling on about everything and nothing and Alec usually loved every second of it.

When everyone had something written down, they all looked up at each other and threw each their piece into the fire. They burned quickly and it felt like something had left a small place inside of Alec. When he looked up at everyone else, it seemed they were all having a moment – some sort of silence for their burned memories.

"ISABELLE! ALEXANDER!" a woman yelled, approaching them. Alec recognized the voice immediately, though he couldn't see her in the dark.

"Mom?" he replied.

"What the hell?" she said, as she came into view in the light of the fire. A small smile threatened to come out at the sight of her son, but he could still tell that she was mad about something. "I thought the cabin had caught fire! I was so worried. Izzy told me you were staying here," she said and embraced Alec. Her embrace was unfamiliar to him, although her mother was very different from his dad, she had never been very affectionate either.

"Sorry, we…" he began, when she noticed what was in the fire.

"Is that a… bear?" she tilted her head to get a better look at the picture under the fire, burning away slowly. "Those are the practice boards?" she looked back at Alec.

"Yeah, I hope it's okay. I heard what…"

"Oh, right. Well, don't mind me then. Carry on," she said.

"Mom, there's actually someone I would like you to meet," Alec said, and now she looked up and noticed Magnus in the dark of the night. "This is Magnus Bane…" he took a deep breath and held the air, "my boyfriend."

"Magnus?" she said, but then forced a smile. "Nice to meet you."

"You too, Mrs…" Magnus stopped himself and looked at Alec for a second. "Miss Trueblood."

"So you've seen the name on the cabin," she smiled more sincerely now.

"Yes, thank you for letting us stay here. It's a lovely place," Magnus said.

"Of course. It's just as much Alec's place as it is mine. He's probably been here more often than I have anyway."

"Yes, he tells me he goes here to write," Magnus said and Alec froze. His mother didn't know about his writer's dream.

"Write?" she said and turned her eyes to Alec's. "I suppose that's why you went on this silly trip then? To… write?"

"Mom, do you want a beer?" Izzy offered, and Maryse seemed to calm down a bit.

"Sure, honey."

They all settled down in front of what was left of the fire. Alec began to explain to his mother everything about the past month, and his connection with Woolsey and an editor. It seemed to calm her down a bit more to know that he had a real chance and talent. Of course her main concern was that he wouldn't make a living on books, and she didn't want him to become "just a housewife" like her mother had been.

"No one is becoming a housewife," Alec sighed.

"Not that I couldn't support both of us, fyi," Magnus added cheerfully. Maryse just scowled at him, but dropped her expression when Alec put a hand on hers.

"I'll get a normal full time job if it doesn't work out," he assured her. "Or continue my studies, I don't know yet."

"Well, it sounds like you've considered your options. I suppose that's a good thing," his mother admitted finally. "I won't crash your bonfire anymore. I just came up to check that everything was fine. Have a safe trip back to New York in the morning," Maryse said with a pat on Alec's back. "It was nice to meet you, Magnus," she added with a bit of forced kindness, Alec detected.

"You too, Maryse," he replied.

Once she was out of sight everyone breathed normally again, Magnus' hand found Alec's back and he pulled him closer.

"Wow, she almost seemed human again," Izzy said. Alec explained to Magnus that ever since she found out Robert had cheated on her for years, she began to keep everyone at a distance.

"I suppose that's understandable," Magnus shrugged. Magnus too had kept everyone at a distance, when Will Herondale had used him to get to the woman he really wanted.

…

"Now you've met my mom. We can go back to New York first thing in the morning," Alec said, while getting ready to sleep.

"Yes, what a pleasant surprise that she just happened to stop by," his boyfriend smiled.

"I suppose we should have warned her about the fire," Alec shrugged.

"It felt good to get that out of your system, didn't it?" Magnus asked. Alec thought about it for a moment, and he felt the peacefulness that came from the weekend's events.

"Yeah, it did," he smiled as he realized it. "Now I can move on, and not worry about being a disappointment anymore. At least I know my mom still cares, after her small speech about my future."

"I could get used to you being a housewife. You could make espresso for me every morning, and go grocery shopping for me…" Magnus said dreamily.

"I already do that. Wait, you're not proposing, are you?" Alec teased with fake shock.

"No, I'm just saying, it doesn't sound so bad," he shrugged, and gave Alec a small kiss on the lips. Alec felt his heart race faster. He had never thought about marriage before, but he also couldn't imagine a life without Magnus. But that's how you're supposed to feel within the first few months of getting to know a partner. They still had time, and they still needed time to grow as a couple. Right now there were hardly any bumps on their road, and even though they knew nearly everything about each other, there would still be surprises. "I'll race you to the bed," Magnus said suddenly and ran to the small bedroom, so that Alec didn't stand a chance. Still, he made an effort to get there first, just to please Magnus. They wrestled down onto the bed, but the wrestling soon became a minor makeout session and they forgot to struggle. Magnus sat on top of Alec, leaning his face down to Alec's so that Alec didn't have to sit up. Alec loved their small makeout sessions, but he was also very tired after a long weekend, and he softly pulled Magnus down next to him and nestled him into his embrace.

"You know, we haven't had sex in this old cabin yet?" Magnus pointed out. Alec chuckled.

"Oh yeah?"

"Are you already getting tired of me?"

"No, just tired. But never tired of you," he said in a low voice, eyes closed and ready to fall asleep.

"I could put your flannel shirt back on, if you want?" Magnus offered. Alec could feel that the man resting on top of his chest wasn't the least bit tired.

"I prefer you without a shirt on," Alec mumbled. Magnus seemed to take the comment as an invitation, and though Magnus himself wasn't wearing a shirt, Alec was sleeping in an old T-shirt, which Magnus' hand found its way up under. Alec kept his eyes closed, pretending to be near sleep. He failed at pretending, when Magnus began to play with his nipple. The man moved over on top of Alec, and worked every move he'd learned would work in his advantage over the past two weeks. Alec's breathing quickened, and keeping his eyes closed only seemed to enhance the feeling of Magnus all over his body. "Magnus," Alec breathed, as his boyfriend began to pump him at a painfully slow rate. "Go faster," he tried, but it only caused Magnus to let go of him completely. Alec's eyes shut open, and he looked into two nearly yellow eyes as they closed down on him, Magnus' lips coming up to kiss him. "Why did you stop?"

"You're tired?" Magnus said innocently.

"Fuck you," Alec chuckled.

"Well, you can if you want?" he smirked. Alec was still breathing hard, when he came with another suggestion.

"Or you could fuck me?" he said in a low voice.

"Alec, you're not sure. I can hear it in your voice. It's okay," Magnus leaned back.

"I want to know what it feels like, what you feel like when you make that face before you come," Alec tried to joke about it.

"I'm hardly a match for you," Magnus said and looked down at Alec's length.

"Are we really going to be that couple? That compliments each other in order to get our way in bed? You know it's the same couples who tell each other to hang up the phone first, right?" Alec said.

"Aren't those the best kind of couples?" Magnus offered. Alec didn't reply, he knew he shouldn't argue with Magnus if he thought he wasn't ready. "Okay, turn over."

"Why?" Alec knew why, but he wasn't sure he wanted to have his back to Magnus the first time.

"I'm going to lick your ass. Just licking, no fucking tonight," Magnus said it like a compromise.

"Fine," Alec groaned and turned over onto his stomach. The groaning of disappointment soon became moaning of pleasure instead, as he felt Magnus' tongue tease him. Alec tried to keep still against the mattress, but it was becoming difficult, when finally Magnus added more pressure and Alec could feel Magnus using his finger. "M-M-Magnus," he stuttered when his boyfriend reached his prostate. Magnus seemed to know exactly what the small whimper meant, and he began to massage with his finger, waking every nerve ending in Alec. He leaned up, thrusting himself back against Magnus' hand, allowing himself enough space to begin pumping himself. He stopped pumping just a few seconds before seeing stars, and falling back down onto the mattress. Still wild with desire he turned around, and pulled Magnus down under him. Alec wasn't tired anymore.

"A-a-ah!" Magnus couldn't object, before Alec closed his mouth around his boyfriend's erection and slowly got him off. The other man writhed underneath him, and Alec held him down by the hips, letting Magnus hit the back of his throat, while he kept moaning loudly in a ragged noise that made it almost sound as if he was trying to say Alec's name, but he couldn't be sure and he couldn't care less. He soon drove Magnus over the edge and felt his load in his throat. Alec smirked at Magnus' exhausted expression – how the tables had turned. "That was the best playtime we've had so far," he breathed.

"Playtime?" Alec frowned. Was that what they were calling it now?

"I'm not sure what really qualifies for sex? I'm guessing penetration should be incorporated?" Magnus still seemed to regain focus.

"You did… penetrate me?" Alec hated that word, there were very few reasons why one should use that word, yet it could be used in so many contexts, however that also meant there usually was another word to use in a given situation, but Alec couldn't come up with one at the moment.

"You didn't think that was…?"

"I know it was your finger, Magnus," Alec rolled his eyes. "Oral also counts for sex, I would say."

"Really? Oral?"

"It's called 'oral sex'," Alec shrugged, and realized they were actually having this conversation. It couldn't be normal to have this kind of conversation right after sex, could it?

"Right," Magnus seemed to rethink this possibility.

"You probably shouldn't tell this opinion of yours once you meet my lesbian friends," Alec added. He could only imagine the conversation between Magnus and Aline. It could either go on for hours, or Aline would simply stop talking to him within the first few seconds of such conversation.

"Oh shit," Magnus said, somewhat shocked by his own ignorance for a change. "I haven't thought about it like that. I'm such an idiot. It must be all the _sex_ I'm having, it's making me stupid."

"Actually, I once read that the best preparation the night before an exam would be to have sex, because when you orgasm that's when you use most parts of your brain," Alec explained.

"Interesting."

Alec turned his head to look at his boyfriend, and he seemed to be plotting something, but Alec never found out what it was (though doubtless something about orgasms and brainiacs), before Magnus cuddled up against him and they both fell asleep.


	11. Chapter 11

**The Darkroom**

"I'm going upstairs, I'll be down in… an hour. Probably, I don't know," Magnus said, while Alec was in deep concentration for his book research, absentmindedly stroking the cat next to him on the couch. As Magnus opened the frontdoor he finally realized what his boyfriend had said to him.

"Wait, what?" he looked up from his computer and Magnus stopped by the door, turning back around. "Upstairs? What's upstairs?" Alec wondered. Magnus lived in a loft, there shouldn't be much upstairs. Magnus sighed with impatience, he was holding something in his hand, but Alec couldn't tell what it was.

"I have a darkroom in the building," he shrugged. Alec blinked, because this was the first he'd heard of it. Magnus seemed to notice that he needed to elaborate. "I haven't used it in years, because I mostly develop photographs at work, but after finding my old camera for Clary's exhibition I thought it would be a nice touch, don't you?" he asked cheerfully. Alec was speechless for a moment. Of course a known photographer would have a darkroom. Magnus turned and walked out of the door. Alec sat for a moment, thinking why he wouldn't have told him he had the room. But then he thought, why would he if he didn't use it anymore? When he realized he wasn't going to get any work done, while thinking about Magnus being all nerdy in his darkroom, he went out of the frontdoor and upstairs. There were only two doors left, and he knew the last one led to the roof, so he knocked on the second last door. It took him a short moment, before Magnus opened the door. "Alec?" he asked surprisedly, and the suspiscious behavior made Alec nervous.

"Can I see?" Alec asked. Magnus hesitated.

"I'm not…"

"What's the matter? It's just a darkroom, right?" he said, and pushed beside Magnus. It was somewhat dark inside, but the red safelight gave Alec a pretty good view of what Magnus might have been embarrassed about. Photos hang across the wall, though they were all black and white they were also very vivid in image. Just from looking at the style of the photos, one could almost be fooled to believe they were a hundred years old, but Alec recognized one of the people recurring in all of the photos – William Herondale. An unsettling feeling began to rise inside of Alec. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and jerked away by reflex. He looked up at Magnus' concerned eyes.

"I told you, I haven't used the room for years," he assured him.

"How many years?" Alec wasn't ready to believe that he hadn't used the room for ten years.

"Years," Magnus said in a low voice, knowing not to lie, but also not wanting to tell the truth. Alec looked back at the photographs. A lot of them were of three people – Will Herondale, another young man and a young woman – being very intimate, bordering pornographic. Magnus wasn't in any of them, because he had been holding the camera. None of them said anything, while Alec studied the photos trying to find some sort of clue that would make it all okay. When he couldn't look at them anymore, he wiped his face to calm himself down, and turned back to Magnus.

"Why would you still have them?"

"I nearly forgot they were here," his boyfriend shrugged.

"Don't lie to me," Alec pleaded.

It wasn't the fact that his boyfriend had pictures of naked people getting cozy together in his darkroom, it was the fact that he had naked pictures of William Herondale that made him feel… what did he feel? His mind was nearly blank, yet his stomach was a twist of sickness and jealousy.

"Okay, I didn't forget. I just didn't think about it anymore. It's both my guilty pleasure and my pain. I think the main reason I still have them though is sentiment. They're from my wild days, my young days. It seems like ages ago, it _is_ ages ago, but when I came up here just now I realized that they were from when I was your age," Magnus said. Nine years suddenly seemed like such a bridge between them. "And I know you are nothing like what I was, I'm not comparing us. I'm just saying, I'm not embarrassed about my past…"

"You're wallowing!" Alec exclaimed.

"I'm not wallowing. And I don't miss it, not exactly. It's difficult to explain."

"No, it's actually quite simple. You're doing exactly what I was doing with the boards my dad made me. It's a piece of your past that brings you both good memories and great misery."

"Okay, maybe it's not that difficult to explain. But you must admit, I was a pretty good photographer, even then," he tried to lighten the mood, but it didn't work on Alec.

"It helped to release those memories and stop wallowing," said Alec.

"I'm not burning my photographs. That's something I did as a teenager, when I thought my work was shit. I don't do that anymore. I go back to photos and I analyze them, just like you go back to revise and analyze your writing."

"Are you saying you go here to analyze Will's…" Alec looked at the photos, "…ass?"

"Will doesn't have an ass, he has an arse," Magnus imitated a British accent. "Come on, what do you want me to do?"

"Get rid of them?" This seemed the obvious answer.

"I told you I can't do that."

"Why?" Alec was confused. "Are you keeping them for blackmail?"

Magnus seemed to consider this for a moment.

"That might not be a bad idea," he said, and Alec's fist met Magnus' shoulder. "Ouch! Okay, when he first let me down, I did consider sending the photos anonymously to various magazines, but of course he would know I was the one who took them. _And_ I'm not cruel."

"He dragged your heart along with him like a dog on a leash," Alec exclaimed.

"I know you're upset, and you don't mean to offend me right now, but that really hurt. It wasn't all his fault. He was a young man in love, and he didn't realize what he was doing to do me," Magnus explained.

"I can't believe you're defending him!"

"I'm defending myself."

"No you're not. You're only making it worse on yourself," Alec said and left the room. Magnus didn't follow him, and he wasn't sure he wanted him to follow. He went back to the living room and stared at his computer for an hour or two, he wasn't sure how long. His mind was full of anger and jealousy. It upset him immensely that after all these years, Magnus would still defend someone who never really cared for him. Will Herondale had never cared for Magnus, Alec told himself. Magnus was only making it worse for himself by keeping the photos, and reminding himself of that miserable time. From what Alec understood Magnus hadn't liked himself very much in Will's company, but he had taught him important lessons in how to be successful. Still, Alec would never like anyone who was the cause of scarring Magnus like he had. Magnus had been emotionally unavailable; keeping his heart locked up and thrown away the key. Alec couldn't believe how lucky he was to have stumbled across the right key. He sniggered at his own ridiculous metaphor, and when he looked up he saw Magnus staring at him in the doorway. He was holding the photographs in his hands.

"I'm sorry. I'm taking them down, locking them away, but I'm not throwing them out," he said finally. Alec got up and walked over to him.

"I'm sorry too. I overreacted," he looked into Magnus eyes to give him some sort of reassurance of his love for him. Magnus looked down at the photos.

"I'm saving them, because…" he hesitated for a moment, and Alec waited patiently, "because they might be worth something someday considering Will's fame. I want to keep them so that if our future children or grandchildren needs money someday they can sell these," he finished. Alec blinked. Magnus always had a way of saying something that completely caught him off guard and made his heard jump.

"Children?"

"Someday," he said with a nervous smile. Alec leaned in to give Magnus a kiss, but his phone rang in his pocket and broke it off before he could reach Magnus' lips. He looked at the screen with a deep sigh – Jace.

"Sorry," he shrugged apologetically.

"It's okay. Take it," Magnus smiled, and Alec walked back into the room, while answering the call.

"Jace?" he answered.

" _Alec, I have something important to tell you, promise not to freak out?_ " his friend said on the other end.

"When do I ever freak out?"

" _On a regular basis?_ " Jace suggested.

"Just tell me," Alec said, impatient to go back to Magnus. It seemed rude suddenly to have left him hanging.

" _I proposed to Clary,_ " he said. Silence. Alec was stunned for a moment, but of course Jace would have proposed to Clary. They had been together for what, three years now? It made perfect sense.

"Congrats!" Alec exclaimed, when he came out of his trance. "I assume she said yes?"

" _Of course. I'm irresistible, no one can say no to me._ " Alec imagined his friend looking smug as usual.

"I remember her saying 'no' for quite a while at first," Alec grinned.

" _Shut up. But you know, keep the date. It's going to be in December. A winter wedding, and I want you as my best man?_ "

"I wouldn't miss it. But won't Simon be disappointed?"

" _Nah man, he can be Clary's maid of honour,_ " Jace joked and Alec chuckled. They joked around for a while, before ending the conversation. When Alec had placed his phone safely back in his pocket, he realized Magnus had been waiting for him where he left him. He had probably heard the entire conversation.

"I'm guessing we're going to a wedding?" he looked cheerful.

"You're looking at the best man," Alec tried to look proud, but he felt like he was somewhat failing at it.

"Nice, and a bachelor's party then," Magnus smiled, and put the photos down on the kitchen table, before closing the distance between them. His arms curled around Alec's back and pulled him close.

"Jace is getting married," Alec said to himself, still shocked, while Magnus kissed him below the ear.

"Have they set a date?" Magnus whispered, continuing to trace a line with his lips down Alec's jaw.

"Some time in December. They want a winter wedding," Alec said, starting to respond to Magnus' gesture, and leaning into the kisses.

"Romantic," his boyfriend mumbled. Alec came back to reality at that, and leaned back a bit.

"So… children, huh?"

"It's not like I've given it much thought," Magnus tried to play it casual.

"Obviously," Alec teased. He had only given it so much thought that he was taking his future children and grandchildren into his financial decisions.

"I admit that I haven't thought about it before I met you, and before I saw you with your brother," Magnus said.

"Jace?"

"Max," his boyfriend replied with a soft smile. "I think you would make a great dad someday."

"Really?" Alec hadn't thought much of it. He was from a smaller community, gay men didn't really adopt children where he came from. But he also found that he wasn't entirely opposed to the idea.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought up children. We've only been dating for a month, obviously it would be way out in the future, if ever," Magnus began to look nervous and uncomfortable, and he stepped away from Alec. Sure, they had only been together for a short time, but they had lived together for longer, and it gave their relationship more possibility to grow faster than other couples. "So, movie and beer tonight?" he suggested. Alec looked at the kitchen table, where the old photographs still lay exposed.

"I thought you were locking those up?"

"Oh shit, right." Magnus grabbed them and walked up to his closet. Alec let his eyes follow him, while he found a box inside the closet and put the photos inside it. He walked back to Alec and put on a small smile. "Better?"

"Yeah," Alec said, not actually feeling any better. If they were having children someday, they would definitely have to get rid of those photographs, so they didn't see that part of Magnus' life – financial security or not.

…

Alec woke on the couch, as the movie ended. They had fallen asleep halfway through the movie. Magnus seemed to also wake under him.

"Gosh, we're so old," he exclaimed and straightened up. "Falling asleep on the couch in front of the TV. We even had wine instead of beer," Magnus stared at the bottle on the coffee table, as if it was a disgrace.

"You're not old," Alec sighed, while clearing his eyes.

"Easy for you to say, you're twenty-one. Why did you fall asleep?"

Alec felt they had both been kind of cranky all day, and after a two-hour movie nap he was feeling better, and he edged closer to Magnus.

"I can come up with a few things that'll make you feel younger," he said as manly as one could utter such sentence, and leaned in to kiss his boyfriend, who maneuvered away from him and off the couch.

"I almost forgot!" he exclaimed, and left the apartment, leaving Alec stunned and rejected. He poured himself another glass of wine, because surely Magnus would be right back? Alec sat on the couch for a couple of minutes, he didn't keep track, but he'd gotten nearly all the way to the bottom of his glass, when Magnus came back into the apartment. Alec noticed immediately that Magnus was carrying more photos, and his heart dropped. Had he forgotten about more photos of Will Herondale and gone to get them, rather than stay and makeout with his actual boyfriend?

"I want to show you something," Magnus said and sat back down next to Alec. He spread out the photos on the coffee table, and Alec relaxed and his heart warmed up. He had almost forgotten what started all this. "I went up to develop these. That's why I didn't want you to know where I was going in the first place. I wanted it to be a surprise, but I guess the surprise was ruined," Magnus shrugged. Although Alec was surprised, because he had completely forgotten about these photos.

Alec looked over the photos from Clary's exhibition. They were all great. Of course they were great! Magnus was incredibly talented. He had developed them all in black and white. Alec's eyes immediately caught one of himself and Max in the back of the room. He remembered the moment; it was right before Magnus had interrupted them. There were a few ones of his friends gathered with champagne. Izzy laughing at something Simon said, but obviously didn't know he was funny, because he had this innocent look on his face. There was one of Clary and Jocelyn with their backs to the camera, while watching one of the paintings. There was a closeup of Jocelyn looking into the camera; it nearly looked like a professional picture for a magazine interview with an artist, and it had probably been taken while Magnus was talking to her.

The best one, however, was by far one of Jace and Clary – Jace looked at Clary like she was the stars in the night sky, while Clary was clearly telling a heart-warming story about one of her art pieces.

"This one…" Alec took the photo of his two friends.

"It would make a great wedding gift," Magnus finished his sentence. Oh gosh, they were becoming an old couple.

"Yes it would," Alec smiled.

"I have one more," Magnus said and found a photo under another one. It was the first picture he had taken on the trip – the one of Alec sleeping. It wasn't as terrible as he'd thought, but he didn't like it very much either. "That's my favorite," he said, obviously teasing.

"At least I'm not drooling," Alec shrugged.

"You don't drool."

"Or sleeping with my mouth open," he added.

"You do that sometimes though," Magnus winked. Alec took the photo out of Magnus' hand and got to his feet.

"We need to extinguish this," he said in all seriousness, and Magnus panicked, got to his feet and grapped the photo.

"No! This I'll keep, no matter what you say," he said.

"You kept the others as well no matter what I said," Alec pointed out.

"I never said I was perfect," Magnus shrugged.

"Perfect is overrated," Alec said, playing it smooth. He got closer to Magnus and began to kiss him, once Magnus got into the kiss, Alec snatched the photo and ran for the door. He didn't have time to plan where to run, but he didn't get far anyway, before Magnus and his long legs had caught him firmly by the arm, and pushed Alec against the door before he could open it. Alec tried to struggle his way out of Magnus' hold, but he failed as Magnus pressed his lips against Alec's. "Fine, you can keep it. But don't ever show it to anyone or I will end your life," he warned him.

"Darn it, there goes my idea of your author's note picture," Magnus grinned.

"You're an idiot," Alec smirked.

"An idiot you would like to fuck tonight?" Magnus offered cheerfully. Alec looked at the watch on the wall. The movie hadn't woken them up until it was near midnight.

"It's midnight. We fell asleep in front of the TV before midnight," Alec said.

"Does that mean yes?"

"That means, I sure don't want to become a dead old couple with you before we reach our two month anniversary," Alec replied. Magnus' face brightened, and he dragged Alec with him towards the bed, but stopped halfway there.

"Have you ever had sex in a darkroom?" he asked, and Alec raised his eyebrows.

"That sounds dangerous?"

…

It wasn't dangerous at all. It was like participating in your own porn video, with the red light and the cameras lying around. Alec had agreed to take Magnus with his back to him for the first time, as he wouldn't be very much able to see Magnus' expression in the light of the darkroom anyway. Usually Magnus' come-face was part of what got Alec off, but this time it had been the sweet sounds Magnus' made as Alec thrusted himself against him. Alec had held Magnus' hands up against the wall in front of them, where the photos of Will Herondale and the other two had been. And when one time Magnus had almost dropped to his knees, Alec had pulled him up and held him in place with a firm grasp around his chest, as he listened to Magnus' whimpers and moans and calling of names. Alec had thought that despite the desire to stay on the couch and sleep in front of the TV, they wouldn't become one of those sexless couples in the near future, because one of them would always be in the mood for something else. Alec had trailed kisses down Magnus' shoulders and back, and tried his best to be both gentle and rough. He had succeeded, and they were now lying on the floor in the redlighted room on top of their clothes, catching their breaths.

"Darkrooms are fucking amazing," Magnus breathed.

"I love darkrooms," Alec agreed. It was a good thing Magnus had decided to take the old photographs off the walls though, or this would have been a short night. "I don't like to fight with you. Not over something like this," he said more serious now, as they were getting back to reality. Magnus looked at him with sad eyes.

"I hate that I disappoint you," he said, and looked down at his hands.

"You don't…" Alec began, and sighed. Alec's mind had been a bipolar mess throughout the evening. He had both found the usual affection for Magnus, but he had also been unusually angry and jealous throughout the day. He didn't want to share his place in Magnus' heart. "I get jealous."

"I wouldn't be unfaithful to you," Magnus said, and pulled Alec's face to look into his eyes. Alec hated that he was beginning to take mental notes about these small romantic gestures for his books. He wanted so badly not to write romance, but it always seemed to find the way into his stories anyway, during this time especially, because he had a more vivid idea of how romance worked now.

"I know you wouldn't. Just… tell me if you ever get the desire to… do something," Alec said, and Magnus raised his eyebrows with wonder.

"What do you mean?" he asked, and Alec noticed from his expression where his trail of thoughts went.

"I'm not talking about fantasies, although that would be good to know as well. I'm talking about other people. I would rather if it didn't come as an accidental surprise," Alec explained. He didn't want to accidentally find out somehow that Magnus was fantasizing about someone else. Alec might be old-fashioned that way, and he thought he had made his opinion on the matter very clear from the beginning. "Wait, _do_ you have any fetishes I should know about?" he asked, and Magnus' expression become a sort of devilish smirk that made Alec nervous. When he figured he was only teasing him, Alec rolled his eyes. "You're incorrigible," he sighed.

"Okay, I do have one fantasy," he admitted suddenly. Alec looked at him sideways.

"I'm not dressing up as a sexy nurse," he warned him, and Magnus laughed.

"I've sometimes thought about it and it always turns me on to think about it," Magnus hesitated and Alec looked at him impatiently and felt nervous.

"Just tell me."

"It's kind of embarrassing," Magnus straightened up a bit, and covered himself with some of the clothes they had scattered on the floor.

"I won't laugh," Alec promised, knowing it would be impossible to keep the promise if Magnus' fantasy was as ridiculous as Magnus himself sometimes was.

"I sometimes fantasize about tying you up to the bed and blindfolding you, so I can do whatever I want to you," Magnus said in a rushed voice, and in a completely unsexy way for such a sexy sentence in itself that Alec was taken aback for a moment. But then he realized he was relieved. He had secretly imagined Magnus' fantasy being extreme, and nowhere near softcore BDSM. Alec remembered last time he'd kept his eyes closed, while Magnus explored him and it had been a very sexy experience, so if that was Magnus' fantasy then he would be willing to try it out.

"That's not embarrassing at all," Alec said, and Magnus looked surprised. "Come on, don't look at me like that. I'm guessing that's a perfectly normal fantasy, and to be honest now that I know you want to do that I feel intrigued by it," he admitted.

"Really?" Magnus seemed to be waiting for him to take it back.

"Do I give off a vibe that says I must always be dominating? I thought I told you I hated that sort of stereotyping," Alec said, and searched for his clothes, because he suddenly felt like they were going to have another talk. He found his boxer briefs and slipped them on.

"No, you just don't seem the type," he shrugged.

"Neither do you, to be honest. Not everyone is what they seem, and that's part of what drew me to you in the first place. I knew you had more layers than what meets the eye," Alec explained, and Magnus gave him a heartbreaking smile of relief and admiration.

"Okay, so you're not freaked out. Good. Do you have any fantasies?"

"Now I do," Alec frowned, because now he couldn't get rid of the image Magnus had placed in his mind. Magnus cracked another heartwarming smile. "But let's try some other night?"

"Okay," Magnus smiled.

* * *

 _ **I realize I keep making very romantic chapters, please let me know if it gets too obnoxious? I will try to put in more story, and I have a few plans that I'm working on.**_

 _ **Remember, I'm always open to ideas, and thankful for reviews! :)**_


	12. Chapter 12

**WARNING: _'The Notebook' spoiler! The ending of the movie is revealed by the end of this chapter._**

* * *

 **James Carstairs**

Alec had had a busy few weeks. His editor had given him a deadline for his first draft, and he had worked day and night for weeks now trying to make it before deadline. He had been cranky and rude, and he felt sorry for Magnus because he was putting up with it. Of course Magnus had taken a few late nights at work, and he had even gone out a few times on weekends as a way of getting out of Alec's hair, so to speak. Alec hadn't worked on anything with such concentration since his last exam, and that seemed nothing compared to an entire book's draft.

He was now meeting his editor, who had insisted he brought in the manuscript rather than sent it to her. Alec hadn't argued, because he didn't think he could afford to argue against his editor's wish like that. But he was nervous that the woman wanted to change a lot of his story. He had talked to her before, of course, but he was more nervous now that he had something more substantial to offer her this time.

He introduced himself at the front desk and walked into Charlotte Branwell's office. Mrs. Branwell was a small woman. She looked almost like a child next to Alec, but that notion faded when he watched her a bit, while she talked about her plans for his book. She needed to read his draft, and then she explained the long process of revision afterwards, and so on. Once the meeting was done, Alec had noticed she gave off a powerful authority he hadn't expected in the small woman. It was also something he couldn't help but admire. He had googled her before he agreed to have her as an editor of course. And sure, Woolsey knew her, but Alec didn't know their relation to each other, and he still wasn't sure how much he actually trusted Woolsey's judgment. But he had been surprised by the woman's career. She began working for a magazine at a very young age and worked her way up in editing. Now she was one of the top editors in New York. Alec listened to her with great admiration and a small fear of saying something wrong or being stupid suddenly, but he kept his calm and they agreed on a few new deadlines. She would read the manuscript within a week, despite being busy with other manuscripts of more famous authors. Alec had a feeling she was only giving him this attention because of Woolsey's connection to her, but he couldn't be sure. He just knew he was grateful for her time.

On the way back to the apartment he felt a weight lifted off his shoulder, that he hadn't realized he'd been carrying for the past few weeks. Instead of going straight home, he went by a coffeeshop and bought coffee for Magnus and Camille, and went by the studio. He had been inside his own mind for too long and he needed to get out and talk to people.

…

Magnus looked up from one of his screens, when he smelled coffee. A sweet smile spread across his face when he noticed it was Alec. They were doing a shoot for Lanvin, and they had a few models in, but Magnus wasn't so busy that he didn't have time to go say hello to his boyfriend. He gave him a small kiss and took the paper cup Alec held out for him.

"Hey there," he whispered. "How was the meeting?"

"It was alright. She'll contact me in a week," he shrugged.

"I'm sure she'll love it."

"We'll see. She seems to know what she's doing though," Alec said.

"Are you staying? I'll find you a chair," Magnus offered and looked around for somewhere to place Alec. Alec knew he must have missed him, while he had been trapped inside his own fantasy, writing stories about demons and hunters and other magical creatures. He sure knew he was beginning to miss Magnus, but he shouldn't intrude on a photoshoot and he'd only come for a cup of coffee and a short chat. He caught Magnus' hand gently.

"It's okay. I'm pretty tired. I'll make dinner tonight?"

"Or we could order something?" Magnus tried to hide his horror. The last time Alec had tried to cook dinner something burned and set off the smoke detector, which they had a difficult time to shut off.

"I'll be careful, and I'll read an actual recipe this time," Alec promised.

"Okay," Magnus looked at him in a sweet way that Alec recognized as affection. "Don't burn down the building," he said and kissed Alec. Alec put down the paper cup he got for Camille on a table, and told Magnus, because she was in one of her usual fits about everything having to be perfect. She could be a pain in the ass, but Alec also knew that without her to keep everything on point Magnus would never get to land photoshoots with the likes of Lanvin.

…

Back home Alec fell asleep immediately, not having realized how tired he was, and he didn't wake until one hour before Magnus got off work. He probably wouldn't have woken up if it hadn't been for Chairman Meow crawling on top of Alec's head. It was a strange habit the small cat had acquired. Alec quickly found a recipe for lasagna. Lasagna should be easy to make, right? He followed the recipe's steps one by one, while occasionally consulting Chairman, who returned his questions with a curious expression. Once the lasagna was in the oven he went for a quick shower. He was still tired, and he was completely ready for a quiet night in the arms of his boyfriend watching an old movie. But when he came back out from the bathroom only wearing a towel around his waist, running to see if he had burned the lasagna, he noticed he wasn't alone anymore. Magnus had brought a guest home.

"Woolsey!" Alec exclaimed, suddenly very much aware of his nakedness. "I didn't know you were coming over?"

"Oh don't mind me," Woolsey smirked, looking up and down at Alec.

"Sorry, I should have warned you," Magnus apologized as Alec went to put on some clothes. He went back down and took out the lasagna, which had cooked perfectly by now.

"Good thing I made lasagna. I think there's enough for everyone," Alec said, being as nice as he could. He didn't like Woolsey's small surprise visits, they usually didn't go so well. The Chairman didn't seem impressed with him either, and Alec remembered that Magnus had told him Woolsey wasn't a cat person. The kitten stared at him for a moment with dissatisfaction, before he left for the bed behind the half-transparent walls.

The three of them sat down to eat, and Woolsey explained that he wanted to stop by and ask about the book. He had talked to Charlotte apparently.

"She seems very intrigued by your story," he said and sipped his glass of red wine.

"I just handed in the manuscript today?" Alec said.

"She's already halfway through it."

"She told me I should expect her to take a week?" Alec continued.

"Apparently she couldn't put it down," Woolsey smiled, and Alec let go a nervous laugh. This particular visit didn't seem all that uncomfortable thus far. "But give her a week anyway, she'll probably go back to reread it and put in notes," he added with a shrug.

Woolsey and Magnus began talking about Magnus' business, and Alec cleared the table when they were done eating. They all settled down on the couch, and the conversation was more casual for a moment. Alec noticed the two of them joked around like the old friends they were, but which he had never seen before. He had never seen the two be social together, it had always only been about Alec and his writing, but it was a nice change. Until Woolsey brought up a new topic, and Alec's prediction about the visit came true.

"I talked to Tessa yesterday," Woolsey began. Magnus froze, and Alec felt his muscles tense. Tessa was the woman Will Herondale and that other man loved. Magnus came back to his senses, before Woolsey went on and he seemed to be suddenly very interested in what might be at the bottom of his wineglass. "Jem is ill again."

Magnus put down his glass, and Alec watched him as he reacted to the news. It seemed to hit some sort of nerve. Woolsey turned to Alec to explain further.

"James has had leukemia once before," he turned back to Magnus, "it's getting worse."

"He got through it last time," Magnus said coldly, as if he was talking about some stranger he had no care for. But despite his words, Alec could tell from the darkness in his eyes that he did care. Alec had never heard much of James, he only knew that he was the third person in the threesome that had once excluded Magnus. "Why are you telling me this now?" Magnus wondered, and Alec could tell what he really meant was 'why are you telling me this here in front of Alec?'.

"I thought you should know, in case… I don't know Magnus, he's a good person. You might want to see him," Woolsey said, and got to his feet. His mission for this visit was completed and he was leaving. "Thank you for dinner, Alexander, it was simple and lovely," he nodded goodbye to Alec, who returned him with a soft smile. The man must have known he and Magnus now had a few things to talk about.

…

"Jem was always the grounded one of the group, back when I knew him. At first I just thought he was boring, but I realized he was the one who was able to pull Will back, when he strayed too far." Magnus was caressing the tiny cat in his lap, while talking about Jem Carstairs. The tiny creature purred under his touch.

"Do you want to go see him?" Alec wondered. He wasn't sure how to feel about the situation. Jem had never been the one who triggered jealousy in Alec, as Will always was. He still wasn't able to read how important this person was to Magnus.

"William will be there. And Tessa," Magnus said without answering his question. "I don't know what I want, Alec. I haven't spoken to him in nearly ten years. It would be odd."

"You could write him a letter?" Alec suggested.

"That's a good idea," Magnus smiled softly. It was a smile of sadness. "He doesn't deserve this. He's pure kindness." Now his smile turned into fondness, and Alec recognized it as nostalgia. "I was always jealous of him and Will, the way they could look at each other and share a private joke. His patience with Will is out of the ordinary. I sometimes asked Tessa if she ever got jalous of their connection, and she told me she didn't want one without the other, because they made each other better. She saw something I didn't. Or perhaps it was only that they love _her_ back just as much as they love each other. I'm sure the three of them are still as one," Magnus said. Alec put his hand on Magnus'.

"You won't ever have to share me," he promised, and looked at the kitten in Magnus' lap. "Well, except maybe with him," he added. Magnus didn't even smile at that, and that made Alec nervous. He took a deep breath, and continued to offer his advice, because he just couldn't help himself. "I can help you with the letter if you want? Or I could go with you to visit him?"

"I still think it would be weird to visit him after all those years," he replied.

"You could call him first? To see how he is?"

"Please stop offering your help. It's not nearly as charming as you probably think," Magnus said coldly. He had never talked to Alec like this before, and it did something to him deep within. It was like Magnus' sadness was suddenly contagious.

"I'm not trying to be charming. I don't like to see you upset."

"I'm not upset," Magnus said firmly.

"You're upset, because you don't know what to do. You probably know deep down you will feel guilty if you didn't contact him and he doesn't make it in the end," Alec said.

"Nobody makes it in the end! Stop trying to analyze me!" Magnus stood up now, and he definitely did not look upset anymore – he looked furious. Alec must have overstepped somewhere, and he realized that now. Frustrated with the situation Alec buried his head in his palms.

"I'm sorry," he said in a low voice, but he heard Magnus walk away. Alec looked up to see the frontdoor slam, and the kitten jumped behind the couch as a shocked reaction from the sudden noise. "Shit," Alec sighed and leaned back in the couch.

…

When Magnus had been gone for four hours, Alec began to get nervous. Maybe something had happened to him? Surely he wouldn't be so upset that he had left Alec for good and was now waiting for Alec to leave his apartment? No, something must have happened to him. An hour ago, Alec had tried to find Magnus at his studio, but no one was there, so he had gone back to the loft. Now Alec was calling up various people he knew in New York. First he had called Camille, who was useless. Then he had called Woolsey, who had said it was quite normal for Magnus to wander off for some time if he got upset, and told Alec not to worry too much yet. Then after some time's searching he finally found Catarina's number and called her to see if she was with Magnus, but she hadn't heard from him either. Alec walked around the apartment restlessly, not knowing what to do. Magnus had turned off his phone, he told himself. Magnus hadn't been mugged or attacked or something worse, he told himself. Even the kitten was beginning to look restless, as it walked around the loft not really settling for one place to lie down, but moving between several of his pillows.

It was early morning, when Magnus came back into the loft. Alec hadn't closed his eyes all night, and had been planted on the couch, staring at the TV worriedly. Magnus had had a couple of drinks, that much was clear from the unfocused look in his eyes. Alec felt both relieved and incredibly angry, at the sight of him by the frontdoor. In fact, he was so relieved and angry that he took a few determined steps towards his boyfriend and crushed his lips against Magnus' in a kiss so hard he could taste blood after a short moment. Magnus was so drunk, Alec realized now, that he didn't even have the strength to fight him off, so he took a step back on his own accord.

"Magnus…" Alec said in a low voice.

"I wrote a letter," he said and fumbled to find a piece of paper inside his jacket's pocket.

"You need to sleep," Alec said, and put his arm around Magnus to support him.

"I don't want to fight," Magnus said, eyes half-closed and his fingers playing with Alec's hair.

"I didn't mean to analyze you," Alec tried to apologize, but he wasn't very good at it in this case.

"You can't help yourself," Magnus looked at his feet, probably trying to determine where to place them next. He hadn't seemed this drunk before the kiss.

Alec led him up to the bed, where he helped him out of his clothes and placed him on the bed. He took the piece of paper, and placed it on the bedside table, where he would leave for Magnus to decide what to do with it tomorrow.

Not sure whether Magnus was really mad at him or not, Alec went down to sleep on the couch. Before he settled down he noticed Chairman Meow sat in the space between the couch and the bed, unsure of where to go, so Alec turned his back on the cat and lay down to sleep. He assumed the kitten had gone to lay next to Magnus, as he didn't see him again till later in the morning.

Alec got up after a few hours of sleep to make them both coffee, but he wasn't sure Magnus was going to get out of bed. He didn't know what to do, so he just put on his jacket and went to the park with his notebook after finishing his coffee. He wanted to give Magnus space. He didn't know why he was so upset about the whole situation, when he hadn't talked to James in so many years. He couldn't imagine what it must be like to get this sort of information about someone you were once close to.

He sat in the park for two hours, writing notes for his books, studying strangers' behavior as they walked in the park unaware of anything outside of their own personal bubble. Afterwards he went back to Magnus' place, and Magnus was up. He was sitting on the couch watching a black TV screen.

"You should really get some art instead, if you're not even going to turn it on," Alec tried to lighten the mood, and it seemed to work. Magnus suppressed a smile.

"I have no idea why I reacted the way I did. It's difficult to explain what goes on inside your head," Magnus shrugged. "It brought back memories."

"You know you can talk to me. I told you about Hodge," Alec sat down next to his boyfriend.

"That's different though. You didn't have an intimate relationship with Hodge, did you?"

"You're right, I'm sorry."

"I want you to read the letter. I want to send it to him. I want him to know that someone is thinking of him. I know he has his… family, but I want him to know," Magnus said and handed Alec the letter.

 _Dear Jem,_

 _Woolsey told me about your condition. I'm truly sorry to hear it is getting worse. You are the kindest person I have ever met and you of all people deserve it the least._

 _I know it has been a long time since we last spoke, but please know that there was never a time when I didn't enjoy your company. Remember the time we had to save Will from getting in trouble with de Quincey's gang? I was glad you were with us, or I might not have gotten Will out of there alive. You were able to carry Will out, while I smooth talked de Quincey's bodyguards. You could carry a lot then, I will always think of you as the young man who could carry the world on his shoulders and never let it get to his head._

 _I hope Tessa and Will take good care of you, as well as you do of them. I know you're in good hands._

 _Sincerest,_

 _Magnus_

Alec took a deep breath once he'd finished reading the letter. Magnus was looking at him expectantly.

"It's beautiful, Magnus," he said and gave it back to Magnus. "You should send it to him. It's always nice to hear that someone is thinking about you."

Magnus nodded silently.

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened with de Quincey?" Alec wondered. He thought the name sounded familiar, and he wasn't sure where he had heard it before. Magnus had probably told him a story once.

"De Quincey was a terrible human being. Remember I told you about Woolsey's brother getting in trouble? De Quincey's gang killed him. Well, Will didn't like him very much either, but unfortunately we were invited to one of his parties, and one simply does not turn down an invitation from de Quincey or he might send someone to chop your head off. I only exaggerate for emphasis. Anyway, we went to his party, and Will accepted some of de Quincey's drugs. Will was always terrible when on drugs, and Jem and I hated it. Luckily, we hadn't brought Tessa this specific evening. It went horribly wrong and Will was so high he began to talk in a very badly behaved manner to de Quincey. Long story shot, when de Quincey walked away I began to sweet talk his monkey, it didn't work of course, but it distracted him long enough for Jem to have time to pull Will over his shoulder and walk out of the party, before any more harm could be done," Magnus explained.

"It doesn't really seem like the experience to be sentimental about?" Alec wondered. It seemed to him like a horrible time.

"It wasn't. But Jem kept his cool the entire time. He always kept his cool. He is the most chill person you will ever meet. He even agreed to share his fiancé for crying out loud!" Magnus seemed to be in a better mood now. Alec watched him as he came to realize the same thing. "It's really incredible what it does to you… being in love I mean. I don't think I would think back on that time in my life with the same fondness if I didn't have something much better now."

"Why are we always doing this?" Alec whispered. They hadn't exactly been together for long enough to even have an 'always'. "Why do we keep getting upset and then just brush it off like a silly mistake?"

Magnus put his hand on both of Alec's.

"I realized something last night, when I was out. I'm not upset about what you think," he began. Alec didn't know what to think, so it was rather difficult to imagine what Magnus might assume. "I got upset because… life is short. It's usually much shorter for the kinder people."

"Or life just wants to test the kinder people, because life knows they can handle it?" Alec offered.

"Perhaps," Magnus smiled, and looked at the letter in his hand. "I'll send it tomorrow. It's getting late."

"Because you slept all day," Alec teased.

"Movie?"

"Sure. But we're not going to watch The No…"

"Notebook? Yes, let's watch it," Magnus said with a smirk, and Alec sighed.

By the end of the movie Magnus turned to look at Alec again. Alec hadn't really watched the movie before. Magnus was the only one who had ever made him watch it, and usually Alec did everything in his power to distract Magnus while watching it. It was a rather good movie, despite the obnoxiously romantic plot. Alec especially liked how much the two main characters were always bickering, it seemed oddly familiar.

"Mortality is such a bitch sometimes, and other times it is perfectly planned out for the two people in love," Magnus said. Alec leaned in to kiss Magnus' shoulder, waiting for him to say more on the matter. He enjoyed it very much when Magnus got philosophical. "Earlier today I was worried that… I worried that something similar might happen to you and take you away from me. It's silly how much power you have over me after such a short time. But it shouldn't take away my dream of having a ridiculously romantic ending like Noah and Allie," he said, about the two main characters who died in each others' arms of old age.

"I love you too," Alec whispered.


	13. Chapter 13

**_Thanks for all the lovely reviews, I appreciate every one of them! I'm sorry it takes me a while to post new chapters, but I've been busy the past few weeks and only have little time to write. Now I finally have a new apartment, and once I'm settled into my own space I think I'll have more time to write the chapters, since I write them as I go along. Enjoy this short little chapter ;)_**

* * *

 **Tied Up**

After such a long time of being unavailable because of his writing, Alec thought he would arrange for something special for Magnus and him. Alec had finally slept off the past several weeks of writing and he was ready to have a hot night in. Besides, Magnus needed a distraction since he hadn't heard back from Jem. Of course, it had only been a few days since he'd sent the letter, but Alec had tried to calm him down and tell him that Jem must be very tired all the time and has no strength to write back every idiot from his past. At that Magnus had laughed weakly and Alec had begun to make plans in his mind to distract him. He remembered a while back when they had had sex in the darkroom that Magnus had told him about his fantasy, and after such a long time it still annoyed Alec a bit that Magnus didn't think he was ready to be… a bottom – he really hated that word, but he couldn't come up with a better expression at the moment, while arranging the bedroom. There were so many decisions to be made first. Magnus' fantasy was to tie Alec up to the bed, cover his eyes and do whatever he pleased with him. Alec could feel the excitement just from the thought of it, and honestly he couldn't wait to see Magnus' face. First he had needed to decide what to use for tying himself up. Handcuffs seemed a bit extreme and somewhat tacky, so he'd decided on rope. Of course, then he couldn't tie himself up before Magnus got home, but it would be kind of hot to have Magnus tie the last knot. Then his next worry was that Magnus would bring home a guest, and he cringed at the thought of Woolsey or Camille walking in on him naked in the bed and halfway tied to the bed, so he decided he needed to let Magnus know he had plans for the night and it should only be the two of them. He could only hope Magnus didn't figure him out then, and would still be surprised. The next issue he was faced with was whether to be completely naked on the bed or leave something for Magnus to remove. He knew he would be uncomfortable being naked for too long, and he wasn't sure he liked the look Chairman Meow was giving him once in a while, as he was setting up everything for the bed. He had removed everything from the bed and only left a pillow for himself. He had tied one end of each rope to the bedposts, and Chairman Meow had looked slightly freaked out by the change of the usually comfortable bed, so he had disappeared into one of his castles in the living room. But if Alec was naked on top of the bed for too long, he would end up feeling awkward by the time Magnus came through the door. In Magnus' line of work he never managed to get off at a specific time, his work hours were always more of an estimate. Alec decided to leave his boxer briefs and a sleeveless top on.

Alec's heart was racing and he felt an uneasiness in his stomach, a sort of excitement, as he tied his feet to the bed. He was unable to tie his own hands properly and left them free waiting for Magnus. He had brought a book with him to the bed in case Magnus would be an hour late, as he sometimes was. This night, however, Magnus was only fifteen minutes late and Alec threw the book off the bed when he heard keys outside the frontdoor. He wrapped the two left ends of rope around his wrists to give the illusion that he was actually tied to the bed for Magnus, when Magnus called out his name.

"Alec?" Exhaustion was the main expression in Magnus' voice, and Alec felt more nervous than ever, suddenly worried that he should have asked Magnus first.

"I'm up here," Alec said through the matte half-transparent walls. He could see the shape of Magnus approaching, and he could hear him dragging his feet.

"You will not believe the day I've…" Magnus was rubbing his temples, but froze by the sight of Alec on the bed. Something sparked in his eyes and he looked amused suddenly. "Well, hello there," he smirked, and Alec relaxed a bit. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting for you. Obviously," Alec teased.

"Obviously. I'm here now," he replied.

"So…" Alec began, swallowing hard. He had to force himself to dirty talk, it seemed unnatural to him and he had never really liked it, but he needed to get in character for this specific fantasy. "…what are you going to do to me?"

Magnus lips curled up in a charming smile, and he slid out of his blazer, while moving closer till he stood by the foot of the bed. He leaned down and ran his hands up Alec's legs.

"I can think of a few things to do to you," he said.

"Just fyi, my hands aren't really tied," Alec admitted and unwrapped his wrists.

"Good. I was wondering about that. I would be disappointed if I didn't get to do some of the work," Magnus said, and crawled onto the bed in between Alec's legs. Magnus helped him pull his top over Alec's head. "I also wonder how you think you'll get your pants off with both your legs tied?"

"Uhm…" Alec couldn't come up with anything clever to say. He'd been more occupied with not feeling awkward, so he hadn't been very practical in his arrangements.

"Never mind that. We'll think of something then," Magnus smirked, probably already having a plan in mind. He bend over Alec, so Alec had to lie back, while Magnus tied his wrists to the bedposts for good. Magnus slid off him and Alec checked to see if the knots were secure – they were secure and very tight around his wrists, he noticed, but he didn't complain.

"Magnus…" Alec said insecurely.

"Does it hurt?" Magnus looked worried.

"Maybe we should have a safeword?" Alec had no idea what Magnus had in mind, but he imagined it might include some sort of spanking or similar activity.

"Yes. How about 'mango'?"

"No. No fruits," Alec said. Magnus seemed quick to interpret this as Alec's protest against the use of 'fruit' as a slang for queer people. It seemed oddly unfit for sex games between a same sex couple. In reality Alec did not want to think about mangos, because that was something that reminded him of Jace; something about a girl who once asked if she could touch his mango. Alec definitely did not want to think of Jace while potentially being spanked by his boyfriend. "How about 'red'?"

"So we don't discriminate against fruits, but we discriminate against colors?" Magnus teased him.

"Red usually means stop in most other areas," he pointed out.

"Red it is. Not that I think we'll need a safeword. It's difficult to admit, but I'm not sure I'm very good at this," Magnus shrugged.

"You can start by covering my eyes with one of your ties?" Alec suggested. His boyfriend's lack of confidence seemed to boost his own. "That's part of your fantasy, right?"

"Okay, bossy pants. That's the last time you make commands tonight. I'll be making the commands from now on. Understood?"

"Yes."

"I think I would like you to call me 'Daddy'," Magnus challenged with raised eyebrows.

"No."

"Yes I would."

"Red," Alec said. He hadn't thought he would use the safeword already, or at all actually. But he crossed the line at calling his boyfriend 'Daddy'.

"Fine," Magnus sulked and went to find one of his ties.

"I'd rather call you ma'am," Alec teased.

"If you call me ma'am I will have to find some horrible way to punish you. You should call me 'Master'," he said and leaned down to cover Alec's eyes with the tie, leaving his breath against Alec's ear. "Or you can call my name. I like the way you moan my name," he whispered. Alec was now completely blinded and he felt his other senses heightened. He listened to Magnus undress himself, and he felt the weight of him as he climbed onto the bed. Magnus ran his hands up each of Alec's thighs, leaving a tickling sensation from the light touch. The most unnerving thing about the situation was that he had no idea what Magnus wanted to do to him. He wasn't even sure what would be worst to endure – physical pain or Magnus teasing him with featherlight touches. He imagined it would be one of those two options, but he couldn't be sure. Suddenly Magnus left the bed and Alec could hear him go to the kitchen, but he came back soon after, getting onto the bed again. "If you trust me, don't say a word," Magnus said, and before Alec could respond with anything he felt a cold instrument against his thighs, working up to his boxer briefs. He felt Magnus' hand against his crotch, he even felt him breathe hot air against the fabric to enhance Alec's erection. He felt himself get harder against the fabric, trying to break free. The friction of his boxer briefs was relieved when the fabric was ripped apart by something sharp.

"Was that…?" Alec breathed nervously. He thought Magnus might have used a sharp knife, or at least some sort of sharp object to undo his boxers.

"Trust," Magnus interrupted him in a commanding voice.

"Sorry."

"Sorry what?" Magnus demanded, finally getting into character.

"Sorry, Master."

Magnus began to leave small kisses all over Alec's body, making him a bit squirmy. Magnus was able to see all of him, but Alec had no sense of how he looked under the touch of his boyfriend. After what seemed like forever of Magnus kissing him and teasing him, he left for a moment. Alec heard a lid pop up, and soon he felt Magnus' fingers against his entrance – fingers covered in cold liquid. Alec breathed heavily through his mouth. Suddenly he didn't like not being able to see Magnus' expression. Was he frowning like he did when he concentrated? Was he smirking like he did when he had evil plans? But then he realized that the not-knowing was half the excitement. Magnus slid one finger inside of Alec, and he sighed with relief.

"So you like that?" Magnus said, and Alec was no longer wondering – he knew Magnus was smirking. Alec bit down on his lip, trying to stop himself from giving this sort of reaction again. He failed at that, when next Magnus added two additional fingers.

"A-aah," Alec gasped at the surprise it sent through his body. He felt lips against the inside of his thighs. Magnus' face was so close to Alec's erection, he could feel his breath, but Magnus was teasing him, not wanting to give Alec the release he was beginning to desperately crave for. A groan escaped his throat, when Magnus suddenly pulled all of his fingers out. Next thing, Alec could feel Magnus breathing next to his ear, and feel the slight touch of Magnus' boxers against his own hard-on. Magnus wasn't even naked yet!

"Alec," he whispered nervously, "I really want to fuck you." Alec turned his face towards the sound of Magnus' voice.

"Do it," he whispered back.

"If you want to see…"

"No, I don't. This is fine, Magnus," he assured him.

"Just say the word if you need me to stop doing something," he said, and pressed his lips against Alec's in a sloppy kiss. Alec felt Magnus making sure that the ropes were still tied securely, and then he shifted in the bed, probably taking off his boxers. Magnus once again ran his hands up and down Alec's legs and the rest of his body, but this time it felt like he was leaving marks with his nails. Alec jerked up, when he felt teeth dig into his hips.

"Aaaah!" he exclaimed, shocked that Magnus was suddenly eager to leave his mark.

"Sorry, sweet cheecks. I was just checking to see your limits," Magnus chuckled. His hands went around and found Alec's ass cheeks, spreading them with his fingers. Alec raised his hips, assuring Magnus everything was fine. Soon he felt Magnus press into him at devastatingly slow pace, leaving Alec moaning in pleasure and sweet pain. Alec tightened his grip around the ropes, causing them to cut into his wrists. He wished he could touch Magnus', but he wondered if it would be the same kind of bitter sweet experience if he could. Magnus waited, while Alec's head tipped back and his muscles relaxed slowly, as much as one could relax in such position.

Magnus leaned down and kissed Alec's chest, probably remembering the first time he needed to adjust to the sweet pain of having Alec inside of him.

"Magnus," he breathed after a short moment.

"Yes, sweetheart?"

"Please fuck me?"

Magnus' tongue flicked Alec's nipple, before he straightened up. Magnus pulled back and thrust himself back into Alec, whose grip continued to tighten around the rope for support.

"Faster," Alec breathed. And Magnus continued with a firmer thrust against Alec. "Repeatedly," Alec begged.

"Why are you still demanding? I thought I was in charge tonight?" Magnus kept still, and instead of obeying Alec's wishes, he began to stroke Alec's erection. Alec was at the verge of pure bliss, nearing climax, probably revealing everything in his moans, because Magnus stopped just before he could get release.

"What…?!" His head jerked up even though he couldn't see anything.

"Not yet," Magnus said. "I find this method just as satisfying as making you come."

"Not as satisfying for me though," Alec sulked under the blindfold. He wished he knew whether Magnus was looking at him with compassion or a smirk. Probably the latter.

"Would you like me to fuck you again?"

"Please," Alec sighed. The desire to come was only getting stronger by every second of hearing Magnus' voice and feeling Magnus' light touches.

"Please what?"

"Please… Master?"

"You want me to fuck you harder than before?" Magnus asked.

"Yes… Master," Alec groaned. He felt more ridiculous in this situation than he had expected, but he also felt some comfort in the fact that he was doing this with Magnus. Even as he couldn't see the most beautiful face his heart knew, he had the second best thing of hearing Magnus' wonderfully demanding voice. Alec hadn't always thought about it, but Magnus was at his most attractive when he was demanding people to do something. He wasn't sure if Magnus knew it himself, but it seemed sometimes that he felt it was his duty to order people around, which worked well with his line of work, but now also very well in his personal life.

Alec's hands tightened around the ropes once more, as Magnus carefully pressed inside him again, letting them both adjust, before thrusting deeper than before. The ropes bore into his ankles and wrists, as Magnus worked with some effort to make them both come at somewhat the same time. Alec was near an orgasm, calling out Magnus' name, and Magnus slapped his thighs, which surprisingly pushed Alec over the edge, his stomach tightened just before all of his muscles relaxed and he felt Magnus reach his own climax. The other man fell down on top of Alec, just lying there for a moment kissing his chest, before removing the blindfold. Alec looked down at the head resting on his chest full of exhaustion. Alec was surprised that he felt just as exhausted; being on the receiving end was not less work or perhaps it was the ties around his wrists and ankles that had required extra effort, he couldn't be sure. But he wished suddenly that he could wrap his arms around Magnus.

"Magnus?"

"Mmh?" The other man murmured against Alec's skin.

"Can't I hold you?"

"I would be surprised if you could, you know, being tied up," Magnus said, beginning to trace patterns on Alec's chest with his fingers.

"That was a request for you to untie me," Alec grinned.

"Not a chance," Magnus shifted and wrapped his arms around Alec, holding him tight. "I want to hold you tonight."

"This is beginning to feel… awkward."

"You ruin everything," Magnus fake sulked, and sat up on top of Alec to untie his arms. Once untied, Magnus held Alec's hands in his, while studying his wrists with furrowed brow. "Shit, you should have said something, they were too tight!"

Sure enough, there were hot pink marks around Alec's wrists, but they didn't hurt that much or at least he hadn't noticed the burn they must have caused. He had been too busy focusing on other sensations.

"I'll just wear long sleeves for the next couple of days," Alec shrugged, and began to untie his ankles, pushing Magnus softly off of him. His legs felt like jelly, and the marks on his skin would probably need a few days to heal, but it had been worth it. Magnus had gone quiet next to him. "You didn't hurt me," Alec said and bit his lip, before admitting "I actually enjoyed it quite a lot." A smile appeared on Magnus lips.

"Really?"

"Really," Alec said and leaned over to kiss Magnus' shoulder.

"So from now on you want to be on the receiving end?"

Alec had to think about it. This was his first time, and sure it had hurt, perhaps the ropes had even been somewhat a distraction between the two different kinds of pain. But as he thought about it, he probably enjoyed being more in charge. He wasn't the kind of person who could just give up control like that on a regular basis. Magnus noticed his hesitation.

"I was only teasing you. I know what you enjoy most, and it's completely fine. I kind of think you're better in charge anyway," Magnus smiled softly.

"The thing that made me fall for you and still makes me fall for you every day, is the way you order people to do anything you have in mind for them, and still when you are here with me you lose the power that you otherwise possess so naturally, because you're afraid you'll do something that might harm me in some way. It's really admirable to have those two traits balanced so well," Alec said sincerely. Magnus swallowed hard, before answering.

"Alec…" Magnus began, but stopped himself, he looked around the room and avoided eye contact. "You're my best friend, Alec. You're the only one who sees that other side of me. I'm glad you want to take over sometimes…" he looked back at Alec, "but I'm also not sorry that I got to try this fantasy," he smiled.

"Good," Alec smiled back, and lay down on the bed, pulling Magnus with him. "I'm sorry to say this, but you're only my second best friend," Alec said, and he could feel Magnus tense.

"Jace?"

"No, Chairman Meow. The secrets I've shared with that little guy is stuff I would never even tell a therapist," Alec said in a serious tone, yet completely joking.

"You're an idiot," Magnus chuckled. "Where is the little guy? Did we scare him off?"

"He's hiding in one of his castles," Alec smiled against Magnus' hair.


	14. Chapter 14

**Funeral**

"She _loved_ it!" Alec said with exasperation, as he threw his script down on top of Magnus' desk. Magnus was in his office working on his computer, and Alec had gone straight to his boyfriend's workplace after receiving the feedback on his book from Charlotte Branwell. She had said she loved it, and then she'd handed him the script back with at least three post-its on each page. Magnus looked up at him with raised eyebrows.

"That's great?" he tried, but he could probably sense that something was wrong. Alec tossed the script closer to Magnus and he eyed it for a second, before he began to smirk. "Alec," Magnus began and moved out of his chair to sit on his desk in front of Alec. Alec suddenly had a similar feeling to the time he went to the principle's office to complain about one of the other students, and the principle calmly told him there was nothing he could do about it. Alec crossed his arms, because he did not like the look Magnus was giving him. "You just started. There's still a long way to go."

"I already revised it three times," Alec said.

"I know you did. But it takes more than that," Magnus explained.

"Yeah, apparently," Alec said coldly, took his script and turned towards the door.

"Alec, you're not mad at me, are you?" Magnus caught his hand.

"No, I'm just frustrated. I knew it needed work, but the amount of notes she gave me is just a bit overwhelming."

"You're very lucky to have found an editor who wants to help publish you in your first try," Magnus reminded him. Alec knew he was right, of course. Authors were always rejected several times, but Alec couldn't shake the feeling that it had nothing to do with luck and more to do with Woolsey Scott. Alec looked back at his boyfriend with a forced smile.

"I know I am. I suppose I'm just exhausted. She told me she would like to see sequels, but she couldn't tell me how many she would be able to get through, it all depends on me of course."

"I know you're going to be great," Magnus encouraged, and gave Alec a small kiss on the forehead.

"I'll see you at home," Alec said.

…

On the way home Alec's mind was a complete mess. He had recently started to realize that his frustration went beyond the book. He was frustrated that he didn't get to see his friends every day, he was slowly getting homesick, but he was afraid to admit it to anyone, because it had been so long since he'd actually been home for more than that one weekend. He should be way beyond homesick by now, but Jace and Clary's wedding seemed to be pulling the emotions out of him. He wanted to be there during preparations. He wanted to see his friends slowly growing into a family, and he felt that he was a bit jealous, because he too longed to have what his friends had. It was an odd feeling, because all at the same time he grieved that he couldn't be there for them, yet he felt an immense sadness that his friends were moving on with their lives and becoming their own family. Alec had always been a big family person, but he knew that Magnus was different. Magnus had never had much family; not since his mother. Alec was afraid to ask him about it, because he was afraid he might scare him off or Magnus would push him away if he thought he couldn't give Alec what he wanted.

During dinner that night, Alec gathered enough courage to touch the topic.

"It feels weird that my friends are getting married. I feel old," Alec began. Magnus' eyebrows went up into his hairline. "You know what I mean," he added. Magnus was nearly a decade older than all of them. "It seems like yesterday Jace and I learned to ride bikes together. And Clary, she's so small, she still looks like a little girl."

"I hope you never called her little girl," Magnus said as if he'd accidentally tried it once.

"Yeah. She gets really upset when you call her that," Alec grinned. "It's only a matter of time before they make their own family though."

"You'll still be their family. They won't forget about you, Alec." Magnus was stabbing his pasta with concentration, trying to make it stay on the fork. Alec had cooked it for too long again, and it was beyond al dente.

"I don't see why they wouldn't? I'm here and they are there, I can't…" Alec stopped himself before he could get too emotional and homesick again.

"You're going to be their best man, you'll be in their wedding photo," Magnus winked.

"About that – Clary will probably ask you to be the wedding photographer," Alec said.

"Gosh, now I feel emotional," Magnus said, but Alec couldn't be sure if he meant it. Magnus lifted his fork to his mouth, but the pasta fell off before he closed his mouth around it. "I need a spoon," he said, and as he got to his feet his phone played _Killer Queen_. Alec eyed Magnus, who was clearly just as surprised. He knew Magnus had different songs for people calling him, but he didn't know who _Killer Queen_ was. "That's your sister?" Magnus said.

"Why is she calling you?"

"Maybe she wants fashion advice?" Magnus suggested, and Alec frowned. "Okay, clearly not that," he added before answering. "Isabelle?"

Alec watched while Magnus went still, all blood seemed to drain from his face. But just as Alec got to his feet, Magnus ended his call, "Yeah, of course. He's right here, I'll let him know and call you later, okay? I'm sorry, Isabelle." Alec didn't know why, but he felt his heart drop as Magnus looked at him with a heartbreaking expression.

"What's wrong? Why did she call you?"

"Alec, let's sit down," Magnus took his hand carefully.

"What's wrong?" he repeated, and refused to move before Magnus explained himself. Magnus let out his breath, and replied.

"She didn't want to tell you over the phone, that's why she called me, she wanted me to tell you…" Magnus swallowed hard, "Max was in an accident –"

"What? Is he okay? What happened?" Alec grabbed his own phone, but Magnus carefully put a hand over his. "No," Alec whispered, as he felt what Magnus wasn't exactly telling him.

"It was an accident on the lake, he didn't…" Magnus stopped himself at the sound of a single sob escaping Alec's throat.

Alec felt disoriented and dizzy, and Magnus locked his arms around him, as if desperately trying to trap his emotions. After a long moment of complete silence and emptiness, Alec came back to his senses.

"Why was he on the lake? He only goes to the lake with me?" Alec said, and then thought _this is my fault, I wasn't there to take him out on the lake_.

"I don't know, Izzy didn't say much else. You should call her," Magnus said in a comforting voice.

"Can you call her instead?" Alec asked, because he suddenly felt too guilty for not being there. He didn't think he could handle it, if Izzy too thought he should have been there for them. Magnus nodded with compassion and called Izzy back. Alec went to the bathroom to splash water in his face as a way of washing off the grief mixed with the guilt that he was now feeling, but it only made the tears come out of their hiding, seeping down his cheeks and making his eyes red. Max was an excellent swimmer, he shouldn't have had a problem even though it was a rather deep lake. Unless he hadn't drowned at all, it had to be something else, he thought.

When he came back into the livingroom, Magnus was waiting on the couch. He had tears in his eyes too, but it looked like he'd tried to wipe them off, just like Alec had tried to wash his own tears away. Alec sat down next to his boyfriend – he was ready to hear what had happened.

"Alec, Isabelle is a mess. She's… the sound of her crying is the most terrible thing I've ever heard," he looked down at his own hands.

"I know, I've heard it once," Alec said. He'd heard it when Hodge died, but he imagined this time was worse. She was older now, and this was their baby brother. Alec could feel everything inside of him tense, when he thought of a lifeless Max. "He went out on his own, didn't he? Because I wasn't there to keep up the tradition?"

Magnus looked at him with surprise, probably realizing that Alec was blaming himself.

"Alexander… you can't blame yourself. He wasn't alone," Magnus said. Alec's eyes turned to Magnus. "Sebastian was with him. They went out on the boat, and he was teaching Max how to steer it, when he must have tripped, he hit his head and fell into the water –"

Anger washed away any sign of guilt and grief Alec had had a minute ago. His mind was now completely occupied by a sudden sense of hatred to the guy he'd never exactly liked.

"Sebastian!? That son of a bitch!"

"Alec, calm down. It was an accident," Magnus tried.

"Says who? Sebastian?"

Magnus looked at him as if he was watching a complete stranger, a lunatic even and it only added to the gruesome thoughts Alec had.

"I'm sure there was nothing he could have done, or he would have."

"You don't know the guy, you've met him once. I saw the way you looked at him, probably contemplating how much you would have to pay him to be your coat hanger!"

"Hey! I know you're in pain right now, but don't take it out on me!" Magnus yelled back at him and it silenced Alec for some reason. He didn't want to fight Magnus. Instead of apologizing he just leaned back in his seat, and stared at the coffee table. "Look, all I'm saying is that Izzy saw Sebastian and she was pretty sure he felt absolutely terrible. One can only imagine."

Alec could only imagine that if he had been home with his family, Max wouldn't be… he couldn't even think the word in his own mind. It seemed too horrible to be true. It felt unreal. Perhaps because he was so far away, and perhaps because he hadn't heard Izzy's voice say it out loud.

…

Alec had no memory of what happened after Magnus explained how terrible Sebastian had looked in the eyes of Izzy. But he woke up on the couch with a blanket wrapped around him. He sat up and saw that Magnus was in the bed, so he went over to him, crawled into bed, and wrapped his arm around Magnus, who was wide awake, but not moving. Alec felt Magnus' hand on his.

"You blacked out. You had a panic attack and then you blacked out. I didn't know if I should carry you or not," Magnus whispered in a groggy voice. "I'm sorry this happened to your family," he added.

"Thank you," Alec whispered back.

"You would think someone like me were used to people blacking out by now. I spent my early twenties with people who were blacked out half the time," he said and turned around to face Alec. "It gets to you on a different level when it's someone you truly care about," he added.

"I'm sorry," Alec avoided meeting Magnus' eyes.

"It's not your fault."

Alec felt hopeless. He didn't know what to do. He knew he should go home and be with his family, but he also knew that it would make him miserable to see Izzy's expression as it would probably reflect his own feelings.

"I don't know what to do?" he whispered.

"You should go be with your family," Magnus said.

"I don't know, I'll be in the way, I…" Alec stopped himself, because he knew Magnus was right. Alec was only scared of the condition he might find his family in. Max was the small and innocent light of the family.

"I'll see if I can reschedule my clients for the funeral, but I'm not sure it's possible, and of course, only if you want me there?"

"I want you there," Alec answered without hesitation. Magnus nodded and rolled over to rest on top of Alec. It was the most comforting feeling he could wish for at the moment, having Magnus in his arms. All he needed was – the Chairman jumped up onto the bed almost as if the cat had read his mind, and he settled down against Alec's side. It helped to feel loved in times like this. Alec no longer felt lonely in life, which scared him a little as he thought about his baby brother.

…

Alec went on the first plane home the next morning. Magnus couldn't reschedule work for an entire week, but he was trying to make arrangements to be there for the funeral. Alec felt weak and groggy as he boarded the plane. He thought he'd been asleep all night, but still it felt like he hadn't slept for weeks. When he'd woken up, Magnus had told him he'd cried in his sleep. Alec didn't even have the energy to feel embarrassed about it. He couldn't control what he did in his sleep anyway.

He had brought the copy of his book with him, because he thought he might have the energy to look through Charlotte's notes. But as soon as he'd opened the script and looked at the first couple of notes, he felt his head spin and he had to close it again. Instead he put on his headphones in hope that no one would talk to him during the flight.

…

Izzy was there to pick him up at the airport, when Alec arrived. She had red eyes, but she'd made sure to try to cover it up with make up and her hair perfectly arranged in a ponytail. She held on to him a little longer than usual, and he didn't break off the hug until she decided it. Izzy cleared her throat before she spoke, which also rarely happened with her otherwise velvety voice.

"I talked to Clary this morning…" Izzy had to make a pause to hold back a sob, "Sebastian, he… uhm," she stopped again. Alec was sure he didn't want to hear anything about Sebastian anyway.

"I don't care about Sebastian," he said coldly. "Let's go home."

In the car, Izzy got her voice back suddenly.

"He ran away. He left a note saying how terrible he felt, and that he couldn't face anyone after what happened," Izzy explained.

"Good," Alec replied.

"Good?!" She sounded angry now. "Good."

"Why aren't you blaming him? What don't I know?" Alec was trying to understand how she could not hate the guy who'd let their brother die.

"It was an accident."

"How do you know? Maybe he's a sociopath? It would make sense. He's handsome, he's charming and he says everything you want to hear, but no one really knows what goes on inside his head," Alec said.

"You're being ridiculous," Izzy said, and clenched her jaw. Alec looked out at the road ahead of them.

"Why didn't he go after him?"

"He did. You know how deep the lake is. Max tripped and he fell into the lake while uncons…" Izzy nearly choked on the last word to keep back another sob. "Sebastian jumped after him, but he couldn't get the water out of him in time."

All Alec heard her saying was that Sebastian was a complete imbecile, who had brought a kid out on a lake without knowing what the fuck he was doing. Anger and hatred once again seemed to wash away all other feelings. Someone should go after the guy and question him.

"Is anybody looking for him? Shouldn't he at least be questioned?"

"Alec, you're implying that Sebastian purposefully let Max –" She couldn't say it either; _die_. He'd let Max _die_.

"I'm implying that I've never really trusted him."

"Don't start with that, it's not true," she replied. They had now reached the family house.

"Is dad coming?"

"Of course he is. But only for the funeral," Izzy said, while keeping her eyes down.

…

Maryse was inside the house, keeping busy while Alec was there, probably afraid that if she didn't have something to do she might break. Izzy was a lot like their mother in that way too. Izzy hadn't even closed down the pub for the weekend, so she had to go to work and Alec had decided to go with her, since there was no way he could have a proper conversation with their mother, while she was in this state. Maryse didn't even look upset. She looked – well, she looked busy, Alec thought.

However, it turned out it wasn't much different at the pub. Izzy acted busy, even though there were only five costumers. Alec was still sipping the same beer she'd handed him when he first got there, when Jace came into the pub an hour later. Jace sat down next to him and patted him on the back.

"How are you holding up, man?" Jace asked.

"He was your brother too, you tell me?" Alec looked at his friend sideways.

"Yeah," Jace said, and he looked pained. It appeared that he was having trouble with his thoughts, because he always had that same look on his face when he was contemplating something. "This sucks. Clary is completely out of it too. I can't…" Jace rested his forehead on his hands in frustration. Alec realized that he was having some of the same troubles Alec was – Jace too wanted to blame someone, but he was stuck in the middle, since he was dating Sebastian's sister. No, he was _engaged_ to Sebastian's sister. Alec had nearly forgotten about the engagement.

"We should find him," Alec said, and Jace looked up at him inquiringly. "I want him to explain himself."

"He did explain himself. Something like this, it happens so fast. He looked completely out of it, Alec. I'm sure his guilt is eating him up wherever he is," Jace said.

Alec wasn't so sure. He didn't think he'd ever witnessed Sebastian looking guilty about anything. And he had plenty to be guilty about. He'd always been a troublemaker, and he'd always quitted what he'd started, yet he always seemed extraordinarily smug and arrogant about it.

"I've never seen him like that. I swear, Alec, he looked different," Jace added, probably noticing the wheels spinning inside Alec's mind.

…

The thoughts didn't leave Alec's mind though, and when the funeral finally came, he could barely remember what he'd spent his week doing. He sure hadn't gotten any work done on his book. The script was still packed away in his bag. He hadn't even told his friends about it, because it seemed insignificant suddenly.

Magnus could only get off work for the one day, so he arrived in town an hour before the funeral. It felt good to have him there. His friends all had someone, and it would have been pure torture to be left in the back alone. The ceremony was quiet, and afterwards Alec didn't say much either, because he was certain that he couldn't say anything that wouldn't make everything feel worse. So he just shook hands and nodded thanks to everyone giving him their condolences. None of the condolences helped more than the hand pressed against the small of his back. Magnus kept his hand there all day, and Alec thought it was more about letting him know that Magnus was right there for him if he needed it, rather than a way of comfort. Either way, he felt grateful.

Alec also made sure to avoid his dad at all costs, but mostly it seemed like Robert was also avoiding him or he simply didn't care to talk him. He had watched him, when he'd gone to talk to Maryse, but Alec didn't know what they'd talked about. She looked upset, but it was her son's funeral after all.

When the day was nearing an end, Alec decided to go back with Magnus. He felt comfort knowing that he didn't have to travel alone.

"Do you think you'll move to New York for good?" Izzy wondered, when they were saying goodbye.

"Longing to get rid of me?" Alec raised an eyebrow, and Izzy smiled for the first time in a week.

"No. Maybe New York wouldn't be so bad," she shrugged.

"Are you going to follow me around then?"

"Stop joking. I'm serious."

"What about Simon?" Alec wondered.

"He was offered a job there, like a real job and not a music related job," she seemed happy about that, despite the fact that she'd fallen in love with him because he'd been in a band. His sister was growing up finally.

"What about the pub?"

"I'm sure there are plenty of bars in New York that need taking care of," she smiled softly. Alec didn't want to get his hopes up, but he was very much liking this idea. "Anyway, we're only considering."

"You would love New York," he said and kissed her cheek, before leaving.

Maybe Izzy had only mentioned it to get his mind off the long miserable day, in that case it worked. He had been so homesick lately, but he hadn't even considered his friends leaving their small town. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea. New York had plenty of opportunities for them. Besides being in a band, Simon was a bit of a tech-wizard. And Izzy had managed the pub for a few years now, she would be able to manage just about any bar or lounge. Alec was still thinking about it, dreaming of the day it might come true and he would have his sister in New York with him, when him and Magnus found their seats on the plane. Alec wouldn't have to be split between Magnus and his family. Perhaps Izzy could even convince Jace and Clary to move too. It would be perfect for Clary to be in New York to make a network of artists and buyers. It was probably ridiculous to think so much of it, but if anyone could convince Jace it would be Izzy and Clary.

"You're smiling?" Magnus noted with a small smile.

"It was just something Izzy said," he replied.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Alec smiled and leaned back in his seat, finally able to get som rest.

* * *

 ** _I apologize for taking so long to post new chapters lately, but I've been lacking inspiration. I didn't plan to incorporate Max' death already, but I also didn't want to just make too many "empty" chapters. I will write another one or two chapters before I begin writing the Clace wedding chapter(s), so if anyone has any ideas - either ideas for a chapter topic or prompts that might help get me inspired, then I will welcome them with open arms ;)_**


	15. Chapter 15

_**Yay, someone gave me a few ideas for a chapter and I think it turned out pretty cute. Enjoy!**_

* * *

 **Archery Against Humanity**

Alec blinked his eyes awake, and the eyelids felt like sandpaper. He hadn't slept very well the past few nights after they got back to New York. Magnus of course had kept him close, trying to squeeze the grief out of him, or so it seemed sometimes. This morning Alec woke up in bed alone. He looked at the time and realized why – he'd finally gotten some sleep, even if it didn't feel that way. However, Magnus was still home. He could hear him in the apartment, so Alec dragged his feet out of bed and went to the kitchen, where Magnus was playing with Chairman Meow on the kitchen table. Magnus quickly swept the kitten off the table and down to the floor.

"Hey sweetheart," Magnus smiled. He had really been annoyingly cheerful the past few days, and Alec knew it was all for his benefit. Yet, it never seemed to cure the ache he felt inside.

"The kitten was on the table," Alec rolled his eyes. He thought he'd made it clear that he didn't want to get cat hair in his food. But Magnus was too lazy to play with him on the floor, because then he would have to bend down. Not that he seemed to have trouble bending down otherwise, Alec thought to himself, vaguely remembering how Magnus had made an attempt to blow him the other night. Alec hadn't really been in the mood though, and Magnus had seemed to understand.

"He's on the floor. I'll wipe the table," Magnus said and hurried to the sink. That's when Alec noticed – Magnus looked _nervous_. He definitely had something on his mind.

"Is something wrong?" Alec frowned.

"You're asking me?" Magnus sniggered, but Alec didn't reply. Magnus sighed. "I feel useless."

"What?" Alec asked, trying to clear his itching eyes.

"I've been trying to cheer you up the past few days, and I know I'm failing miserably, I just feel… useless. I know you need to grieve, but you should get outside once in a while."

The Chairman rubbed himself against Alec's leg, begging for attention.

"Just tell me what you want to do and we'll do whatever," Magnus seemed to beg for attention as well. It wasn't fair to Magnus, Alec knew that. None of it was his fault. In fact, Alec was pretty sure without Magnus he wouldn't even get out of bed. So he nodded. "Yes?"

"I want you to take me outside," Alec nodded again.

"Great! I actually had an idea…" Magnus began.

"Don't you have work today?"

"No, it's Sunday."

"Huh." Alec hadn't even realized what day of the week it was.

"After my failed introduction to archery, I researched archery in New York, it turns out that they have a space in the park that they open up for people to use on Sundays during late autumn. There's supervision and teachers there, but if you're practiced you can just rent the space for a couple of hours…" Magnus was talking, and Alec knew he looked taken aback. Magnus had done research on how to cheer him up? Magnus looked at Alec suddenly, and stopped talking. He must have looked kind of stunned. "We don't have to if you're not up for it," he added.

"No, it's…" Alec couldn't help but smile now that he looked at his boyfriend. Magnus was so desperate to make him happy. "I'm going to kick your ass in archery," he smirked.

"I might be a natural?" Magnus offered.

"Please," Alec rolled his eyes in amusement and went to get dressed.

…

They rented a space, and Alec convinced the supervisor that he would teach Magnus. The space was closed off and there wasn't really much risk to practicing alone anyway. First, Alec needed to explain the basics. He had forgotten about that the last time he was teaching Magnus, because he had been distracted by the familiar surroundings and his father's homemade target boards. This was different, and in a more professional setting. Alec wanted to do it right. Besides, they had the time for it now.

"There are different techniques to decide which is your bow hand and which is your drawing hand," Alec began. "The standard technique is to hold the bow according to eye dominance, but I prefer to do it according to the hand with greatest dexterity. You're left handed, so you should hold the bow in your right hand and draw with your left hand."

"Are you talking dirty to me?" Magnus winked and held up the bow with his right hand.

"Not yet," Alec put his hand on Magnus' outstretched arm.

"Oh, so you're saying it gets dirtier?"

"You're ridiculous," Alec sniggered.

"Sorry," Magnus shrugged without the slightest sign of regret.

"Now you need to work on the right stance. As a beginner you should keep your legs apart at shoulder-width."

"Now you're doing it on purpose," Magnus teased, but did as he was told. Despite the heat in Alec's cheeks, he was a bit amused by Magnus' jokes. Still, he appreciated that he actually did what Alec told him to do.

"When you load the bow, you want to point it at the ground," Alec said, and instructed him. It was kind of perfect that Magnus was left-handed, while Alec was right-handed, because it gave Magnus the chance to mirror Alec' stance, while Alec could still watch to see if he was doing it right. Alec loaded the bow and held it up, aiming towards the bullseye and let go. It shot right to the middle of the target.

"Show-off," Magnus smirked, and held up his arms the same way. Alec watched him and while Magnus aimed, he went closer which only seemed to distract Magnus.

"You're only using two fingers, you should use three," Alec noted. "Here," he placed the last finger underneath the second one, while Magnus' index finger was above the arrow. Alec had almost expected Magnus to make another joke, but instead his boyfriend concentrated on the target now. Alec stepped back and Magnus took a deep breath, pulled back the bowstring and let the arrow directly to the ground three meters from where they stood. Alec suspressed a laugh. Magnus composed himself, before he turned his eyes towards Alec.

"That's harder than it looks," he said in an undefeated manner.

"That's what he said," Alec grinned.

"Again," Magnus said and reached for another arrow. This time he didn't accept any of Alec's help, and this time he actually reached the target, but it didn't stick and fell to the ground.

"That was actually pretty good," Alec said, feeling a bit impressed.

"You're just trying to make me feel better."

"I thought you were trying to make me feel better?" Alec raised an eyebrow.

"Is it working?" Magnus wondered. Alec thought about it for a moment. The ache in his chest was still very much there, but he was in a better mood.

"Yeah," Alec replied, but Magnus didn't look convinced.

"It's your turn," Magnus said and stepped back to make room for Alec. Alec once again hit the target without difficulty. "Do it with closed eyes," Magnus suggested.

"What?"

"You heard me," he challenged. Alec went to remove the arrow from the target, and loaded the bow again, before he closed his eyes. He lifted his arms to reach the aim he felt he'd used just a minute ago, and he shot the arrow from the bow. When he looked it wasn't exactly in the middle of the target, but it was set securely in one of the outer circles. "Shit, that's hot," Magnus sighed.

"Your turn," Alec said. "With open eyes," he added, before Magnus could make a lame excuse.

Magnus managed to make the arrow stick this time and he looked like a proud kid, who'd just gotten his first A.

"Do it with the bow on your back," Magnus made another challenge.

"I've done that before," Alec smirked, reached his arms onto his back and released an arrow, landing it right in the bullseye. "Still having fun?" Alec challenged.

"Are you kidding me? This is so hot. I'd be entertained for days!"

Alec was almost certain Magnus was bullshitting him, but he didn't question it. They continued for another hour, before Alec noticed Magnus was looking at his phone – no, he was taking pictures with his phone. It amazed Alec that all the time he had known Magnus he had never seen him once use his iPhone camera, he'd always brought a camera for taking pictures. But sure enough he was snapping pictures with his phone.

"What are you doing?" Alec looked at Magnus, and Magnus looked up from his phone.

"I just got this yesterday." Magnus' face lit up as he pointed at his phone. Now Alec noticed an extra lens on the phone.

"A lens?"

"The Active Lens," Magnus said, as if it should clarify everything for Alec. "Look," he said and went to show Alec the pictures he'd just snapped. The colors were amazing. Alec didn't have a fancy iPhone, he had an old LG hand-me-down from Izzy and it didn't take great pictures, but Magnus' pictures were ridiculous. Despite the subject of the pictures being him, he was amazed by the quality.

"Your iPhone did this?"

"My new Active Lens did this," he said proudly. "I want to get these printed in the size of a wall and plaster it in the living room."

Alec frowned and looked at a picture of him with his bow raised and aimed at the target, and the target in focus. He almost wouldn't recognize himself with the back to the camera and not completely in focus, but he was sure other people would.

"I'm going to call it 'Target'," Magnus smirked. Alec wrinkled his nose. "'Bullseye'?"

"No," Alec replied. "I think I've had enough archery for today. Are you hungry?"

"Sure, sweetie," Magnus smiled softly and went to give back the rented bows and arrows.

…

Magnus spent the rest of the day being his lovely self and cheering Alec up, and it seemed to work. But it wasn't until Alec got a text from Izzy that he truly felt things going his way. They were having a late dinner at home, because Alec felt like he'd been out enough for one day and he needed a quiet and romantic night in. Now he was reading a message from Izzy, saying her and Simon were coming for a quick visit.

"What is it?" Magnus seemed to smile only because Alec smiled.

"Izzy and Simon will be in New York tomorrow. He has a job interview here," Alec explained.

"That's awesome! You can entertain them while I'm at work."

"I don't think I would be the best guide," Alec shrugged, but deep down he was just happy he was going to see his sister, even if it had only been about a week since they'd last seen each other at the funeral. He suddenly felt sad that he had forgotten all about Max for an entire day. He felt guilty for not thinking about his baby brother, still, he also wanted desperately to forget in order to continue having days like this.

"What happened just now?" Magnus noticed everything. He rarely missed a change of mood in Alec. Alec felt like he was being trapped inside his body, and the pressure was giving him trouble breathing. Magnus got to his feet, as Alec heaved for air. "Alec!" Magnus pulled him close, but Alec softly pushed him away.

"No," he breathed. "It's just. A panic. Attack."

"Just? Alec, I…" Magnus looked pained, but Alec turned his head down to get his breathing under control. It took him several minutes, but he eventually calmed down. Magnus leaned against him, and pressed his lips down on Alec's hair. "I know the feeling," he whispered against his hair. Alec looked up at Magnus, who wiped away the tears on Alec's cheeks. Magnus was probably thinking about his mother. "I remember feeling guilty every time I had fun and forgot about my mom," Magnus explained. "It's a horrible thing that we do to ourselves," he added and Alec stood up to reach Magnus' face, close his lips against Magnus' lips and press himself against the emotional state of safety that Magnus' body gave him. Alec went so deep into the kiss he almost felt dizzy, when he leaned back again. "Are you okay?"

Alec nodded. He didn't know what he would have done without Magnus.

"I'm just not hungry anymore. I just want to go to bed," he said.

"I'll clear the table and be right up," Magnus gave him another soft kiss.

Alec took the small grey tabby cat into his arms and went to prepare for bed. Chairman placed himself on Magnus' pillow, right next to Alec's head and Alec fell asleep before Magnus came to bed.

…

"You should bring Izzy by the studio today," Magnus said, while getting dressed. Alec was only just waking up, but Magnus appeared to have been awake for hours and ready for work.

"Did you even go to sleep?" Alec wondered. He didn't remember Magnus going to bed.

"You slept like a baby. That's an odd expression, isn't it? Babies rarely sleep all through the night. Or so I've heard," Magnus' cheery mood wasn't unusual these days. The two of them were almost like yin and yang that way – when one was feeling down the other one took it to be their duty to be cheerful, in order to keep the balance. If they were both miserable, if Magnus added to that feeling they would end up being a very depressing couple.

"Magnus, you're talking about babies?" Alec mumbled against his pillow.

"Right. But I'm serious, you should bring her by the studio. I think she would enjoy it, don't you?"

"Who?"

"Izzy," Magnus replied. "You're still asleep," he realized.

"No no, I'm awake," Alec continued to mumble. He was totally awake.

"Good thing I ordered them a taxi."

"You don't want me to drive in New York anyway," Alec said and began to sit up.

"Oh, he's awake," Magnus teased. "Did you hear what I said?"

"Sure, bring Izzy to the studio. She'll love it," Alec mumbled. Magnus came over to give Alec a goodbye kiss, and just as he left the apartment the small cat jumped onto the bed. Chairman Meow purred as he looked at Alec, and Alec was certain Magnus had forgotten to feed him before leaving. Alec ran a hand over the cat, glad he had some company during these hours of the day. "You're right. We need coffee. I'll make some," he said and stumbled out of bed. His morning routine seemed extra slow today, and he continued to feel groggy even after a shower. Perhaps he'd kept the water a bit too warm for him to properly wake up from it. It wasn't until Izzy and Simon arrived that his energy level seemed to go up a bit.

The two of them were only staying one night, so they had agreed to stay at the loft with Alec and Magnus. He couldn't say he wasn't looking forward to an entire evening with his sister and friend.

Izzy looked happy as always, when they entered the loft. She tried to shake Chairman Meow's paw as a way of introducing herself, but he ran off as soon as she approached him.

"Is he as grumpy as Church?"

"He's just shy," Alec shrugged. Church was something else entirely. Church was the kind of creature you greeted by a paw-shake, but Alec hadn't taught the new kitten to do the same. Honestly, he thought it was mostly for dogs to do tricks anyway. Alec placed their bags next to the couch, which they would have to pull out for them to sleep on. Simon looked kind of nervous, and Alec figured it was due to his job interview.

"When is your interview?" Alec wondered, once they'd gotten all the greeting small talk out of the way.

"In two hours," Simon said.

"We should get lunch before then," Alec offered.

…

Simon didn't eat much for lunch, but he did talk a lot. If he got the job he would be working on developing new video games. He'd be perfecting games and pitching ideas. Alec didn't think it sounded very interesting, but he knew Simon was different and his nervousness showed that he was very excited. It helped a bit to see Simon worked up like this, because if they were to move to New York, Alec wouldn't feel too guilty about it. He wouldn't have to feel that he dragged them there.

Izzy and Alec dropped Simon off at the company, wished him good luck and promised to be back in an hour. It gave them enough time to go visit Magnus a few blocks away.

Izzy looked happy to see Magnus and they greeted each other with a warm hug. Izzy looked around the studio with amazement, and Alec felt a bit proud of his boyfriend.

"This is such a cool space," she remarked, as she looked at some of the prints on the walls.

"Built it from scratch," Magnus shrugged. Izzy walked back to Alec.

"Your boyfriend is amazing," she whispered loud enough for Magnus to hear her as well.

"You don't need to tell me," Alec smirked.

"Move over to the spotlight," Magnus said and gestured for Izzy to walk over to the blank wall. Izzy did as she was told and immediately began posing, because that was Izzy for you. Magnus snapped pictures like never before.

"Is this good?" Izzy asked, as she put a hand in her hair and lifted her chin enough to emphasize her cheekbone and jawline.

"Perfect," Magnus said with eyes behind the camera. Alec could follow everything on the computer screen.

When it was time for Izzy to see some of her photos, the two others joined Alec by the computer to analyze, or whatever it was that photographers did when they looked at the pictures. Alec imagined there would have to be some guideline for what qualified as good modelling skills.

"I'm not surprised that these are totally rad," Izzy said proudly.

Magnus printed a few of the pictures for her to take with her, and she beamed the entire way back to get Simon. Magnus had been right – Izzy enjoyed the studio.

"What would you do if Simon got the job here?"

"Well, first I would need to sell the pub back home. And then I guess I would have to find something here. I'm sure plenty of bars are hiring, right?" she shrugged. Alec was amazed by how unfazed his sister was about the entire thing, but then again, Izzy always kept these kinds of emotions and thoughts to herself. Everything she ever made a display of was her happy and outgoing personality.

"Maybe you should let Magnus help you into the modelling world?" Alec suggested casually.

"I would have to retire before I've even started. I'm too old for that, Alec," she brushed him off, but he wasn't having it, not today for some reason.

"Magnus says that things are changing, the fashion industry wants real people these days, and not teenage girls with the height of basketball players and the weight of five-year-olds. Besides, you look like you could be my little sister," Alec said.

"Did you just call me short _and_ fat?" Izzy wrinkled her nose.

"No. I'm just saying, Magnus doesn't go for the safe option. Remember he photographed Raphael Santiago? Nothing about that shoot was safe," Alec reminded her.

"Great, so now you're saying I'm as controversial as a porn star. Good talk, Alec," she said with a hint of sarcasm. Alec sighed. "Maybe I should open a brothel. I've always dreamed of that," she said dreamily. Alec gaped at her. "Kidding," she said in a manner that told him she was absolutely not kidding.

The conversation ended at that, because Simon was outside the building waiting for them.

"About time," he said. Alec couldn't read his expression – was he happy about the interview or not?

"How did it go?" Izzy asked.

"I don't know. There was a lot of sweating and talking and I don't know. I might have screwed it up. There were five other guys outside waiting to be interviewed. I felt like an actress waiting to be cast. They all looked like me," Simon shuddered. "They'll get back to me sometime this week."

"Well, you did everything you could. Now here's a little something to cheer you up," Izzy said and handed him the photographs Magnus had taken of her. Simon looked through them and began to smirk.

"That does cheer me up," he said and kissed Izzy in a flirtatious way. Alec frowned, not really sure he would have ever imagined Simon being flirtatious. He looked away and cleared his throat. He still didn't like to see guys kissing his sister.

…

"'All the cool kids are doing it'," Izzy read out loud a black card, as they were all comfortably seated around the coffee table after dinner playing _Cards Against Humanity_. It was Magnus' favorite game and Simon seemed to be liking it too. Izzy took the white cards to read her options. "'Sex swing', 'Hilary Clinton' and 'Sexy dance fighting'. I feel like there's a lot of sex in this one," Izzy noted.

"That's what you get for picking a card with the words 'doing it' on," Magnus remarked.

"Who had 'sexy dance fighting', that one is definitely winning," Izzy said. Alec raised his hand.

"Obviously I was the one with 'sex swing'," Magnus smirked. Everyone looked at Simon. They had only just started and he had already offered a card with 'Hilary Clinton'.

"What? All the cool kids like Hilary," Simon pulled his shoulders up in a shrug.

"Moving on," Magnus said. It was his turn. "'Someone went off list and got us *blank* for our wedding'."

"Ooh, this might give us some ideas for what to give Clary and Jace," Simon said, looked at his cards and probably remembered they all sucked, because he responded with a small frown of disgust.

Alec threw a white card on the table, waiting for the others. Izzy and Simon followed with their cards. Magnus looked at the cards and read them out loud with signs of amusement on his lips, trying to suppress it but failing.

"Someone went off the list and got us Chlamydia for our wedding. Oh that is definitely winning. The others say 'antlers' and 'grandma's chicken salad'," Magnus said.

"Come on! Grandma's chicken salad would be a great wedding gift!" Simon protested. Magnus looked at Alec.

"Guilty," Alec replied to his boyfriend's look. Alec's luck continued, when Simon read a card that said, 'in the new tenth circle of Hell sinners will be condemned to an eternity of *blank*' and Alec looked at his cards and remembered he had one that said 'Sara Palin'.

Alec's luck went down though, when it was his turn and he draw a black card that said, 'What is the only way I can achieve orgasm?'

"Can I write my own card, because I know that one," Magnus said with a devilish grin. Alec felt his cheeks flush and his face felt warm, as Simon and Izzy made childish whistling sounds. Alec's face only felt warmer as he read the white cards his friends offered, and he did not want to say them out loud. All of them were watching him. "You need to read the black card again before you read the white cards," Magnus reminded him. Alec took a deep breath.

"What is the only way I can achieve orgasm? You guys are the worst, you know that right?" he said, before reading out loud, because he'd already read the cards in his head.

"Read the cards," Izzy demanded.

"I don't know how you all managed to get cards that work so well with this black card," Alec sighed.

"Come on, we want to hear it," Simon teased.

"Okay, I'm just saying, someone is definitely cheating in this game," he added, before moving on. "What is the only way I can achieve orgasm? 'Anal lube'," huge grins spread across his friends' faces, "'magic wand'," Alec scowled at Magnus, "'crotchless panties'," he finished reading. Everyone except from Alec burst out laughing. Alec knew that each one of them were of course hilariously coincidental and comical, but he felt very vulnerable to humiliation at this moment.

"Are you going to choose the best one?" Izzy smirked.

"Are you having a difficult time because they are all ways you achieve orgasm?" Simon offered in a helpful voice, yet he was so not helpful at all.

"Obviously, my magic wand is was makes you achieve orgasm, so I don't think there's really any questions here," Magnus said and reached for his card back.

"You were crotchless panties, weren't you?" Alec eyed Simon.

"Yup. And my crotchless panties would have won if they weren't up against your boyfriend's magic wand," Simon replied.

"I hate this game," Alec said to no one in particular. Chairman Meow came out of his hiding and placed himself in Alec's lap, almost as if the cat was feeling sorry for him. He hadn't been out of his castle ever since their guest arrived. Chairman wouldn't be much help in _Cards Against Humanities_ , but it didn't stop Alec from trying to get the cat's opinion every time he needed to choose a white card.

Finally, after a long hour of playing that insane game of cards, they were all tired from the long day and arraned to go to bed. Magnus made a quick warning about staining his couch, before him and Alec went to bed behind the half-transparent wall to the bed "room".

* * *

 ** _I have never played Cards Against Humanity myself, but I've seen it on youtube and it looks hilarious. I definitely need to get a hold of a set of cards before my next party. Maybe they would be fun for Halloween ;) Btw, all ideas for cards were taken from the Cards Against Humanity app, so I didn't make any of them up. However, I did make up a lot about the archery part, because I have no knowledge of the sport other than a small bit of information I read online. I hope you enjoyed it anyway!_**


	16. Chapter 16

**_This chapter is from Magnus' point of view. I thought it would be interesting to get his view on things, but I'm not sure it worked very well. I guess I relate more to Alec, so it's easier for me to write from his perspective._**

* * *

 **Eventful**

"I sometimes wish I could see inside that head of yours," Alec said. Magnus looked up from his computer. He had concentrated on editing the last photoshoot for the past few hours, and Alec had been sitting across the table working on his novel. Magnus sometimes wished he knew what went on inside Alec's mind as well. His boyfriend had been kind of different ever since the funeral, Magnus had noticed. It had helped, when Izzy and Simon came for a short visit a few weeks ago, but it was more the little things he noticed – Alec didn't smile as much as he usually did, he sometimes forgot to give Magnus a goodnight kiss, and sometimes it appeared that he didn't notice when Chairman Meow wanted his attention. Magnus was a bit worried. He had reminded himself a few times that Alec had been through a lot of stress and was still under a lot of pressure. He had refused to tell Charlotte Branwell that he'd lost his brother, so Magnus had called her up without Alec's permission to explain it to her. He knew Alec wanted to be strong and not let his emotions control his work, but he couldn't help it. Magnus now realized, as Alec was staring at him, that he hadn't been doing any work the past few hours like he'd pretended to do. Knowing Alec, he'd probably just watched Magnus, and tried to read his mind by force.

"You'd be bored," Magnus smirked.

"I'm pretty sure I wouldn't," he replied, but he looked sad about it. "If only I could get out of my own head once in a while…" he said and it seemed like he trailed off.

"Alec, why do you say that?" Magnus asked, trying hard not to sound too worried. Writer's were especially prone to depression and Alec had had a lot of odds against him recently. If it was up to Magnus he would continue to give Alec all his attention all day long and do all the things he loved, like archery and drinking coffee and cuddling, but Magnus was certain both of them would get bored soon.

"I don't know," Alec shook his head and avoided looking at Magnus.

The young boy was so gorgeous and precious and Magnus wanted to show him just the way Alec looked from his perspective. Magnus got up and went over to put his arms around Alec, his hands locked around him in front of the boy's chest.

"If there was a way for you to look inside my head, I would let you do it, so you could see yourself from a different perspective," he whispered into Alec's ear. Alec sighed, as if Magnus had said the one thing he didn't want to hear, so he let go of him. "What's wrong?"

It had been three weeks since Max' funeral, but the sorrow was still evident in Alec's every move. He was exhausted all the time, and he didn't want to talk as much as he usually did. At times he didn't even seem interested in topics that Magnus knew interested him.

"I haven't heard from Izzy yet. Simon should have gotten an answer by now, but she keeps avoiding my questions. It's probably because he didn't get it, and she doesn't want to tell me they're not moving," Alec shrugged. Magnus was taken aback for a moment, and realized he hadn't expected such a long answer. He suddenly felt a bit guilty. They had never really talked about living in New York forever, he'd always just assumed Alec was fine with it despite feeling homesick once in a while. He cursed himself for not having seen it earlier, when Izzy was here two weeks ago and it had lit up Alec's mood.

"What can I do?" Magnus asked. He wanted desperately to make Alec happy. Instead of giving Magnus an answer right away, Alec got to his feet and stepped in front of Magnus with a heartbreaking expression.

"Make me think of something else?" he almost begged. Magnus was just about to question what he should do once again, but Alec cut him off with a needful kiss. Magnus pulled him closer, desperately wanting to comfort the boy. But Magnus' attempt to comfort Alec was soon disregarded as Alec pushed Magnus back until he hit a wall. Magnus' breathing quickened from the surprise and the excitement. They hadn't been really passionate for nearly a month now. They'd had sex, but he'd noticed Alec's heart wasn't really in it. This felt different. This felt similar to when they'd had a fight and they'd had hot makeup sex. But they hadn't had a fight, not exactly. Magnus let his hands wander up under Alec's worn-out sweater, and Alec pressed his entire body against Magnus'. Magnus felt a hand grab his growing erection, and Alec began to rub against him with his entire body. Magnus strongly needed some of their clothes to be removed or he might combust. Almost as if he'd actually finally read Magnus' mind, Alec removed his own shirt and pants, before he moved on to remove all of Magnus' clothes in rushed movements. Alec forcefully turned Magnus around to face the wall, and pressed him against it. Magnus couldn't move in Alec's strong hold, but he could feel his boyfriend's hardness against him. Magnus knew he had a lean figure, he wasn't exactly skinny, but compared to Alec's muscles Magnus didn't stand a chance to break free if Alec didn't want him to. They had sometimes wrestled each other, but Alec had always held back to give Magnus a chance. This felt different.

"Alec, I'm not comfortable in this position," Magnus said through gritted teeth. He didn't like to admit these sort of things. He was supposed to be the experienced one. But the flat and rock hard surface of the kitchen's brick wall wasn't very enjoyable to be pinned against. Besides, it felt uncharactaristic for Alec to act this way in his emotional state. Alec let go of him then, and turned Magnus back around, just so he could lift him off his feet and pull him over his shoulder in yet another quick move. Shocked, Magnus didn't protest at first, he just let Alec carry him up to the bed, where he was roughly thrown down onto the soft material.

"Alec, what has gotten into you!" Magnus exclaimed, not sure he liked this side of Alec. He wasn't being himself.

"I… want you?" Alec seemed to think this was obvious, but Magnus didn't feel wanted at all. He felt like one of the many people he used to shag, but never cared much about. Magnus sat up on his elbows, while Alec stood by the foot of the bed, looking down at him. He was breathing heavily, probably from carrying Magnus like that. He took in every inch of Alec with his eyes – the most gorgeous young man he'd ever known. His opinion on the matter might have been partially unfair though, seeing Magnus thought of Alec's beauty going beyond his appearances. And though he still had physical beauty advantages at the moment, his inner beauty seemed to have momentarily left the building, so to speak.

"You want to be in control, there are other ways," Magnus said. He remembered why he had had a fantasy of being in control – Magnus had always been in control, he'd been his own boss for so long, and he could only imagine that Alec had felt without much control recently. Magnus also knew that Alec would be way better at being dominating in their small roleplay than he had been. Alec seemed to be contemplating something, and Magnus somehow knew that he was aware of what he had meant. Alec moved away from the bed and went to the closet, where he found two ties. "Creative," Magnus smirked.

"I don't know where you put the robes. Now shut up," Alec said.

"I put them…"

"What did I just say?" Alec interrupted with a demanding voice.

"Sorry." Another deadly look from Alec pierced Magnus' eyes and he didn't say another word. Instead he felt his heart beat faster and faster; whether it was from excitement or pure nerves he didn't know.

Alec tied both of Magnus' hands above his head and then tied them to the bedpost. It was a strange look on him – confidence. But it suited him and it didn't fail to get Magnus worked up quite a bit. The odd mixture of nervousness and excitement was still somewhat new to Magnus. He had never in his life expected someone like Alec Lightwood to come into his life and sweep him off his feet – but he had. Alec looked at him now, with hungry eyes – eyes that knew every inch of what they were watching, but still looked amazed by the sight. Magnus had never been one to be very modest or shy, but a look like that from Alec made his skin feel warm. He didn't want to interrupt whatever Alec had in mind for the evening, but he was beginning to desperately long for the boy's touch again. Alec then ran his hands up Magnus' legs, before he grabbed his crotch and Magnus let out a gasp of surprise. Magnus looked down once he'd recovered from the shock of Alec's straightforwardness, and noticed Alec too was getting very hard, yet Magnus couldn't do much about it while tied to the bed. Everything was up to Alec.

The boy bent down and bit down on Magnus hips, making him arch his back into the touch. Alec's hand went around him then, and reached for his ass cheeks. He was getting so good at it, Magnus couldn't help but feel a bit proud, because he'd taught him everything he knew, and boy did he get rewarded for it now! Alec bit down on his chest, while digging his fingers into Magnus.

"A-aah!" Magnus groaned from the mix of pain and pleasure it was giving him. It wasn't anything hardcore at all, but Magnus had never been used to it. He'd once in a while had a girl who'd wanted him to spank her, but this was completely different, extremely softcore and so very sexy. Alec leaned up, but didn't remove his hands.

"Tell me you want me," he said, staring into Magnus' eyes.

"I want you," Magnus said without hesitation. Alec's lips crashed down against Magnus' in a deep kiss. He could nearly feel Alec's sadness in the way he kissed him, and he wanted to wrap his arms around him to make it all go away, but was once again reminded that it had to be up to Alec considering the ties around his wrists.

"Well, you'll have to wait," Alec said, let go of Magnus and leaned off the bed.

"What?!" Magnus strained his neck to look up at his boyfriend, who was now smirking.

"Just kidding," he grinned and came back to lean on the bed, taking Magnus' erection in his hand, before closing his mouth around the head.

"Mmmm," Magnus moaned, as Alec began pumping slowly, while working his tongue. Magnus closed his eyes, clenched his fist, digged his nails into his palms as he was getting near an orgasm. "Alec, stop, I'm about to come," he breathed. Alec let go, and reached over to the bedside table to get the lube. He didn't do much to prepare Magnus other than adding liquid and lifting his legs up to let his heels rest on Alec's shoulders, and the sudden pressure felt like hot pain until he got adjusted to the feeling. Alec leaned down to give Magnus a quick kiss, and looked up at his tied hands. Magnus followed his gaze, and noticed he'd dug his nails so deep into his palms he was slightly bleeding.

"Did I hurt you?" A flash of worry ran over Alec's eyes. _There's my Alec,_ Magnus thought.

"Not at all," Magnus whispered back with a soft smile. He wanted Alec to continue whatever he had in mind, and it honestly didn't hurt his palms. But the forceful side of Alec didn't come back, instead he thrust into Magnus at a nearly painfully slow pace. His eyes rolled back in his head, as he felt Alec go deeper with every thrust, while he lifted Magnus' legs further up to get better access. Alec leaned down and kissed Magnus' throat, then his collarbone and back up to his jawline. Despite the desperate need to touch Alec, he knew it would have ruined the sensation Alec's touch gave him. Magnus didn't have the interruptions of his own touch, and all he could feel was Alec – Alec's lips brushing along his skin, Alec's fingers and nails digging carefully into his flesh, Alec going deeper inside him. Everything in his mind was Alec. Alec here, Alec now, Alec's sweet smell under Magnus' nose. Magnus was near oblivion, when he came undone underneath Alec, and he didn't want to come back to reality for a few minutes afterwards, as Alec collapsed on top of him. Only when Alec moved away to untie Magnus' wrists did he open his eyes. His arms had fallen asleep, and fell down onto the pillow. Alec suppressed a smile, and then he took Magnus' hands in his and shook them lightly. Magnus felt the prickling feeling of his arms coming back to life. Alec studied Magnus' palms.

"I'm really fine. You know, you don't feel as much pain in your palms actually," Magnus said and licked one of his small wounds that had stopped bleeding a while ago. Alec sighed with disbelief. "Did I distract you?" Magnus wondered, trying to change the subject.

"Very much," Alec smiled softly and kissed his neck.

"Are you sniffing my neck like a little dog?" Magnus heard Alec inhale.

"Yes," the boy chuckled against Magnus' shoulder. Magnus loved that sound, and he hadn't heard it in a while. "It's not my fault you smell so good post-sex," he added, and looked at Magnus.

"Well I ain't stopping you then, you little dog," Magnus smirked. To Magnus' disappointment Alec rolled off him to lie beside him. The boy stared at the ceiling, and Magnus was just about to offer a penny for his thought, when Alec' phone vibrated and he reached to look at it. Alec frowned. "What is it?"

"Izzy says 'I hope you're decent'?" Alec read aloud.

"What does that mean?" Magnus wondered, and then… "Oh shit."

"What?" Alec was still clueless, even when Magnus turned his grin towards him, he didn't realize what it meant. The door bell sounded then, and Alec froze, suddenly reaching realization. "Oh fuck!"

He jumped out of bed, nervously searching for something decent to wear, but the nerves prevented him from finding anything right in front of his nose. Magnus calmly got out of bed and went to answer the doorphone.

"Yes?" he said, already aware of who it might well be, otherwise he might have said something that would embarrass Alec, such as 'who dare disturb the spectacular Magnus Bane during sexy times!'

"It's Izzy!" the girl yelled, probably not used to doorphones.

"Take the stairs, we're indecent," Magnus said and buzzed her inside.

"Why did you say that?!" Alec exclaimed.

"Please, like she would care," Magnus replied.

"I care," the boy retorted and put on a pair of pants. Magnus was glad he hadn't used his 'sexy times' answer after all.

Magnus didn't have time to cover himself up with more than a blanket, before there was a knock on the door.

" _May I come in?_ " Izzy called. Alec went to open the door, after a weak attempt at shooing Magnus into the bathroom. Magnus only raised an eyebrow, in a wish to quietly say 'are you serious?'

"Surprise!" the girl sang as Alec opened the door.

"It is a surprise," he said and gave his sister an awkward hug, because he was still shirtless and somewhat in need of a shower.

Magnus was having his own little party of observing the two, already knowing every worry that went on inside Alec's mind – his biggest worry most likely that she could see or smell the sex on him.

"Bad timing, I see?" the girl grinned. The Chairman came out of his hiding, curious to see who was by the door. Izzy leaned down to pet him. "Hey you, little kitty. You're so cute," and she talked to him in baby language. Magnus had to suppress a snigger.

"I would give you a hug, but… uhm," Magnus broke off, as Alec shot him a warning expression. "I was just about to take a shower, so I'm completely naked under this blanket." He knew he wouldn't fool Izzy, because she much like himself was not one to be embarrassed about nudity. Magnus kept his distance solely for Alec's sake.

"It's fine. I just wanted to surprise you guys, that's why I left Simon at the hotel. I didn't know if you were… busy," Izzy grinned. Alec cleared his throat before he spoke.

"Are you staying? In New York?" Alec said without being specific, but she seemed to understand what he meant.

"We're going to look at apartments tomorrow. Simon got the job!" she smiled widely. Magnus noticed the relief washing away all of Alec's worries from the previous few weeks.

"That's great, Izzy," he smiled back.

"We should celebrate with dinner tonight?" Magnus offered.

"Yes! You have to show me some of New York as well," Izzy said. "But, uhm, you guys should get dressed. We can meet later. Here's the hotel card," she handed Alec a small card, and kissed him on the cheek. She gave Magnus a small wave of the hand and he nodded goodbye.

Once they were alone again, Magnus dropped the blanket and asked Alec to join him in the shower.

…

Alec didn't seem to relax while they were getting ready for dinner. Magnus noticed that he looked both nervous and excited. Alec was dressed up for the occasion, which Magnus suspected was something he had taught him over the months of their relationship. Alec still looked at new clothes like it was sent from outer space, before he put it on. Magnus suddenly had an idea of making an 'outer space' photoshoot. He didn't always realize it, but Alec was his muse sometimes.

"You look very handsome," Magnus noted. Alec turned to look at him, while trying to do his tie. Alec rarely wore ties or bowties, but Magnus was slowly easing him into that too. Once, Magnus had given him a bowtie he wore at one of the business parties with Magnus' clients, and Alec had looked stunning. It was amazing what a simple thing like a bowtie could do to your looks, when you were a tall, brooding, yet incredibly handsome and masculine guy with black hair and deep blue eyes.

"I can't believe they are actually moving here," Alec smiled wryly, as if he honestly didn't believe it.

"I believe it. She would be crazy not to miss you," Magnus teased.

"I hope she's doing alright. She does this thing, like mom, where she just locks up all of her feelings and they just pile up," Alec explained.

"I'm sure New York will make her forget about the pile," Magnus leaned in to kiss Alec's neck, because he knew it would distract him. Alec had a few spots that were directly connected to other parts of him – the part just below his throat was directly connected to his knees, and though Alec probably didn't realize it, Magnus knew just where to push his buttons. Kisses on Alec's neck, however, was directly connected to parts of his brain that would just shut down for a moment, while Magnus softly brushed his lips over the skin and poked him with his tongue.

"Shi-it, we're going to be late, Magnus," he sighed like a horny little teenager. Magnus loved it when he could get this sort of reaction from his boyfriend.

"I think we have time," Magnus mumbled against the boy's skin. Once Magnus found his way down Alec's pants without looking and still kissing his neck, Alec was already hard. Magnus undid Alec's pants and Alec leaned his back against Magnus for support. Magnus started a few motions – he began pumping Alec, he sometimes left small bites on Alec's neck and he brushed his free hand over Alec's chest to feel his heart racing against his touch. Soon Alec fell over as he came into Magnus' hand. Magnus went to the bathroom to wash his hands, and when he came back Alec was still adjusting his pants. But when he saw Magnus approach, he walked over to him and kissed him with a heartbreaking force. Magnus wrapped his arms around the young boy.

"I missed this. Everything we did today, I've missed it," Alec said in a low voice. Magnus knew what he meant.

"You know, in every relationship there are dry spells. You don't always have to be passionate. I understand why you haven't been lately," Magnus assured him, giving him a small kiss on the nose.

"I love you."

"I love you more," Magnus smirked.

"Not possible," Alec said in a voice so low it almost sounded like sadness. Magnus dropped his smirk, and took Alec's hand, before they left for dinner.

…

"Clary asked me to be her maid of honor, but I have no idea what to do for her bachelorette party. I mean that's the maid of honor's job, right?" Simon asked, as they waited for dinner to be served.

"I still can't believe she asked you," Izzy sulked, clearly jealous. Magnus knew Clary had asked Simon before everything happened with Max, or he was certain Clary would have asked Izzy instead to distract her with something.

"I told you we can do it together," Simon said.

"But she didn't ask me, did she?"

"I'm sure she won't mind. In fact, you will probably be way better at it than me," Simon assured her.

"I totally would. But it's the best friend's job," she shrugged.

"Maybe we should bring her to New York?"

"That's an excellent idea," Magnus agreed. "Alec, it'll be easier if you plan a bachelor party here for Jace as well."

"I guess," Alec shrugged. Magnus knew he hadn't put much thought into it yet. He couldn't really blame him. Besides, they had enough time to plan for it still. They still had Halloween to get past, and then they could worry about planning. Halloween was Magnus' favorite holiday, because he got to dress up and usually Woolsey would have a big party with most of the city invited. It would also be his and Alec's first Halloween together, and he felt just a bit too excited about going to one of those parties as a couple. "We should plan a weekend for them to come visit us and surprise them? Sometime next month, right?"

"Yes, we definitely can't do it on the weekend they are getting married if the party is going to be here in New York. I've seen _Hangover_ ," Izzy agreed. "Oh! Maybe we could do a photoshoot at your studio, Magnus?"

"I don't think it's really Clary's thing," Simon objected.

"Isn't a bachelorette party all about leaving your comfort zone?"

"I don't think so?" Simon on the other hand didn't appear to be familiar with the movie _Hangover_ , Magnus noted.

"Maybe it's more Jace's thing? I mean, he seems a bit narcissistic?" Magnus offered.

"We also need to figure out who goes with who. Usually it's girls and boys separated, but since Simon is maid of honor he'll have to go with the girls," Izzy said. The conversation about bachelor and bachelorette parties continued for another hour, and eventually they decided to split people between who they were best friends with. Of course, that left Magnus hanging in the unknown. He didn't really care much either way, because they agreed that by the end of the night they would all go to a bar together. It would be more fun for all parts. They also decided on the weekend after Thanksgiving. Of course they would have to check with Jace and Clary to see if they were free to "visit" New York.

…

Next morning Magnus wasn't in a very good mood, because he had to go to work, while Alec was free to go with his sister and Simon to look at apartments.

"What's up?" Alec picked up on his mood like always, and leaned his chin on Magnus shoulder, while Magnus was staring at his coffee. He had made his coffee on his own this morning, because Alec was getting ready to meet his friends, but now Magnus realized it had been a mistake to try to make coffee again, once he'd gotten a taste of Alec's coffee.

"I wish I could go with you today," he shrugged. Magnus also felt like he'd probably had too much wine last night.

"You'll see the final apartment once they move in," Alec gave him a small smile, and Magnus couldn't help but lean in and kiss the smile on Alec's lips.

"Are _you_ okay?" Magnus changed the topic, because Alec finally seemed to be in a better mood. All of the latest distractions seemed to work on him, but Magnus wasn't sure if he was only hiding his pain now. Alec gave him a reassuring smile. "Do you want me to stay out of the party planning?"

"Are you kidding me? I don't know how to plan a party. Without you I would be the worst best man ever," Alec exaggerated, and Magnus appreciated it.

"Okay. I'll help you plan once we get past Halloween."

"Halloween?"

"Woolsey always throws a huge party, I'm surprised he hasn't send out the invites yet. This year, I'm going to pick out a couple's costume," Magnus smirked, and got up to go get ready in the bathroom.

"Couple's costume? Wait, Magnus!"

Magnus closed the door behind him before Alec could follow, and he heard the doorbell – it must be Izzy and Simon coming to pick Alec up.

"We're not done having this… costume discussion!" Alec yelled from outside.

"Certainly not!" Magnus said cheerfully.


	17. Chapter 17

**The Halloween Party**

Alec could not believe his luck, when Izzy and Simon found an apartment only two blocks away from Magnus' place. It wasn't a great place, but it was a start. Izzy hadn't been able to sell the pub back home, she'd only rented it out to one of her employees. She was still trying to convince Luke that it would be perfect for him to take the place, but he wasn't entirely convinced that 'bookstore owner by day and pub owner by night' was his calling in life.

Alec was supposed to work his ass off during the week, so he had time to help his sister move into the place on the weekend. Of course, Magnus had other things to occupy Alec's time with.

"Woolsey's Halloween invitation has finally arrived," Magnus waved his iPad in front of Alec.

"Great," Alec shrugged. "When is it?"

"On Halloween? Are you even listening?"

"Of course I'm listening. I didn't get an invi…" Alec began.

"'My dearest friends'," Magnus interrupted. "It's in plural. You're invited. Everyone is invited."

Alec wasn't even sure he wanted to go. He had only been to a Halloween party once, and it had been a disaster. Of course, Jace and Clary had dressed up as the characters from _Grease_ , just like every other couple at the party.

"I have work, and I need to help Izzy and Simon," Alec shrugged.

"Good idea! We'll invite Izzy and Simon. They'll get a chance to network here in New York. Don't tell me you wouldn't do that for your sister, I know she's still looking for a job," Magnus said, hiding his smirk.

"A guilt-trip, really? That's low, Magnus."

"Why would it be so bad? You've been to parties before?"

"Yeah. Regular parties, not parties that give people an excuse to dress up as sexy just about anything," Alec sighed.

"What do you think a 'sexy just about anything' would look like?" Magnus mused.

"You know what I mean."

"I've been looking at costumes. This is the first year I'll be going as a couple with someone I actually want to look cute and couply with. Last year I had to take Camille, it was awful, she wanted us to dress up like…"

"Let me guess, Sandy and Danny?"

"How did you know?" Magnus wondered.

"Jace and Clary did the same mistake one year."

"Huh. Well, that's why I think we should go as John and Yoko," Magnus smiled hugely.

"No."

"John Travolta and Uma Thurman in _Pulp Fiction_?" he offered.

"Absolutely not."

"I suppose you have better ideas?"

"Can I go as a bankrobber?" Alec suggested.

"What would that look like?"

"All black?"

"How about we meet halfway and go as Bonnie and Clyde?" Magnus said. Alec knew this conversation could go on forever, so he closed his laptop and leaned back in his seat.

"Why are all iconic couples straight?" he wondered.

"Batman and Robin?"

"Cliché. And I'm not going as your sidekick," Alec said.

"I'll be Robin then," Magnus shrugged. Although Alec didn't want to stand out, he also did not like the idea of standing by the bar with four other Batmans. "Adam and Steve? We'll look so hot." Alec rolled his eyes. "Right, no sexy costumes. R2D2 and C3PO, world's first iconic gay couple?"

"You need to keep digging if you want me in a costume," Alec said. Magnus narrowed his eyes at him, unlocked his iPad and went to sit on the couch without another word. Finally Alec could get some work done, while Magnus did some research.

…

It was the night of Halloween, and Magnus had finally convinced Alec to wear a costume he didn't entirely hate. He was comforted by the fact that his sister was going with them. Her and Simon would come over before they would leave for Woolsey's party. Izzy said she was bringing a surprise. It was probably something terrifying, as it was Halloween and Izzy was good at terrifying. One year, their mom had agreed to let Izzy do the house decoration to scare trick-or-treaters, and let's just say they all went running for their lives. She had gone full-on Freddy Krueger on the poor children, if Alec didn't know any better he would say she might even have visited them in their dreams.

Now Magnus was helping him get ready, since the costumes were his idea. Alec wasn't sure it even counted as a couple's costume, it was more friends' costumes.

"Will Turner is totally in love with Jack Sparrow," Magnus said, while doing Alec's makeup for him.

"I didn't think pirates used makeup? And why do you get to be Jack Sparrow?" Alec wasn't really mad about it, because honestly, he had a little Johnny Depp fantasy and he was the one taking Jack Sparrow home tonight.

"Are you saying you're not totally in love with me?"

"I'm saying that Will is not in love with Jack. If you wanted a real bromance we should have gone with Hollywood's version of Sherlock and Watson," Alec pointed out.

"You're such a nerd," Magnus said, and leaned back to admire his work with Alec's face. Alec frowned, but forgot what he was about to say when he heard a scratching sound.

"What was that?"

"Maybe it was a Halloween ghost?" Magnus raised an eyebrow. The sound was there again, now it was a constant scratching sound. Magnus looked around the living room. "Where is Chairman?"

Alec shrugged. He hadn't seen him for a few hours.

"We didn't lock him out, did we?" Alec wondered and went to open the door. No one was out in the hall. The scratching sound continued, but it had grown more aggressive. Magnus looked at the kitchen island and began to open the cupboards. Chairman jumped out at him from under the sink. Magnus fell back on the floor.

"You locked him in!" he exclaimed.

"Why are you so sure that I did it?" Alec wasn't sure he hadn't. He'd been a bit distracted watching Magnus put on his makeup and doing his beard, which he'd let grow for the occasion. Alec also knew that the real reason he was going to be Will Turner and not Jack Sparrow was because he would never put on a wig with dreadlocks. He had, however, not cut his hair since he moved to New York and it was getting kind of long and perfect for the costume. He would have to cut it after Halloween though.

Magnus picked up the small cat.

"You know what this means, right?"

"What?" Alec shrugged.

"We need to show him all our love with cuddles before we leave, so he won't hate us when we get back," Magnus explained. Alec chuckled, but stepped closer to pet Chairman Meow on the head, as he was comfortably settled in Magnus' arms. At first the cat looked suspicious, but he soon decided he didn't care why he was suddenly drowning in love, and purred.

"Your costume is pretty hot," Alec admitted.

"And you were the one who didn't want sexy costumes."

They were interrupted when someone knocked on the door.

"Who let them inside the building?" Alec wondered.

"It's Halloween, anyone will open the door if you say the magic words 'trick-or-treat'," Magnus said and put down the cat so he could go find another hiding place. Alec opened the door and was surprised by not only welcoming two friends, but four.

"Aline and Helen!" he marvelled. It had been a while since he'd last seen them, but he recognized them despite their costumes. They both looked very cute in fairy costumes. While Izzy and Simon was dressed up as Buffy the vampire slayer and a vampire.

"I hope you don't mind, I invited them. I talked to Helen last week and told her everything about New York," Izzy said.

"The more the merrier," Magnus said and stepped closer to the door. "I'm…"

"Magnus," Aline interrupted and shook his hand shortly. "I've heard a lot about you."

Alec hadn't talked much to Aline, but they'd used to talk a lot. They were the first out gay people at their high school, and so they'd bonded over their mutual status as a minority. They didn't have a lot more in common than just that, but Aline was a nice person to be around. She had a sort of ease about her. And then she met Helen, who were Izzy's only other girl friend than Clary. They had all sort of started hanging out, and Alec had once again begun to enjoy Aline's company and now also Helen's company.

"Oh. You must be Aline," Magnus said.

"I'm Helen," Helen smiled softly. Helen had had a difficult beginning in life. Alec had never explained Helen's life to Magnus, because he had never enjoyed talking about other people's misery. Helen's mother had died when she was very young, and she and her brother had met their dad for the first time after their mother's death. By then their father had already married another woman and had a few children of their own. Long story short, a few years ago her dad and stepmother were killed in an accident, her brother Mark lost his mind and she had to take care of her younger siblings. There was a whole lot of them and Alec never got around to remember their names, he only knew the oldest children.

"We need drinks!" Magnus said suddenly, bringing Alec out of his stream of thoughts. "Alec?"

"Oh I'm the guy for making drinks?" he frowned.

"I'm sure you'll manage. Come, sit." Magnus went farther into the living room and Alec's friends joined him by the couch, except from Aline, who followed Alec to the kitchen.

"I'm really glad you're here. I miss you guys," Alec said, and reached up into the cupboard for glass and booze. Chairman Meow was hiding behind the kitchen island, and Alec ignored him, because he looked spooked.

"We miss you too," Aline smiled. "Aww, you have a cat? You're even gayer than we are."

"That's saying a lot coming from the lesbian dressed as a fairy," Alec smirked.

"I think it's only gay if a guy is dressed as a fairy, even a bit clichéd."

"Amazing Magnus didn't come up with it then."

"He doesn't seem as feminine as you guys make him out to be?" Aline noted.

"He's really not. I guess he just likes clichés, and he really does know a lot about fashion," Alec shrugged.

"What are you supposed to be? Wait, don't tell me… Leo D in that movie with the iron mask?"

"Not even close. I'm Will Turner."

"Oh, that makes sense then," she said and looked at Magnus. "Either way, you guys look sexy."

Alec eyed Aline's very short dress showing off her tan legs, and her breasts pushed up to show her cleavage. The dress really didn't leave much for imagination. He had had to veto a lot of Magnus' suggestions. The worse by far had been Rocky and Frank-N-Furter. There was just no way Alec was going to wear a pair of golden underwear. And he definitely didn't think Magnus would look as sexy as a transvestite as he did in his pirate costume.

"Do you think sexy Halloween costumes will ever be a 'last year's look' kind of thing?"

"Probably not. But hey, look at our partners, they look pretty damn sexy too," Aline nudged his ribs. Alec held up a glass he'd just poured.

"Scotch?"

…

Woolsey's party was something else. It wasn't that Alec hadn't expected it to be extravagant, but this was beyond what he'd imagined. There were people everywhere, and everyone looked flashy and sexy and intimidating, and Alec took Magnus' hand to make sure he wouldn't leave him alone. Woolsey came to welcome them as soon as he noticed them. He was dressed up as a werewolf, supposedly Jack Nicholson from _Wolf_.

"Who are all these gorgeous people?" Woolsey asked with open arms. His eyes ran across the group and landed on Izzy. "Buffy must be Alec's sister?" he guessed.

"Pleasure," Izzy suddenly acted formal and held up her hand for him to kiss. It was that kind of appearance and effect Woolsey had on people at his parties. "This is my vampire," she said and pushed Simon up beside her.

"Well, it's good to see you all. Lovely fairies too. Please get yourselves a drink or twenty, make yourselves at home," Woolsey said and disappeared into the crowd of people.

"Nice guy," Simon shrugged.

"Is he the one who helped you get an editor?" Izzy asked.

"That's the one," Alec replied.

"There's Camille. I'll go say hi," Magnus let go of Alec's hand and left him with his friends. Alec was glad suddenly that he'd brought so many friends with him. Woolsey's parties could be overwhelming if you felt alone.

The buffet was amazing. It was all small snacks, but they all looked incredibly realistic – there were several cakes and pies made out to look like mummies, there were casket brownies, eyeballs, skeletons and even more. The punches were marked as 'Witches brew', 'Zombie virus' and 'Unicorn blood'. Ghosts were hanging from the ceiling everywhere. Alec and Aline were watching the different kinds of punch, while the three others were completely occupied by the buffet. Alec noticed that Woolsey found Izzy again and they began talking, but he couldn't hear what they were talking about over the noise of the crowd.

"Unicorn blood? That's kind of bizarre. I like unicorns," Aline said.

"Maybe we should try witches brew?" It was a green liquid and it smelled like sour apples.

"Hopefully I won't be turned into a rat," Aline shrugged and poured herself a glass. "Oh my gosh, this is so delicious!" she exclaimed, bottomed her glass immediately and poured another glass. Alec sniggered and got his own glass. It did have a sort of sour taste, but it was delicious.

Alec was glad that he had a chance to catch up with Aline and Helen. Woolsey had cornered Izzy and Simon, probably talking about New York and their big move. So Alec had the fairies all to himself, while Magnus had disappeared into the crowd. Helen was working on her PhD, while Aline had gotten a teaching job at the local high school. They both seemed very happy, and Alec knew the impact they had both had on each other. In a way they reminded him a lot of himself and Magnus. Helen had been completely brokenhearted when her parents died, and she had to look after her siblings. But Aline had offered her help with everything and quickly moved in with the Blackthorns to show her devotion. From what Izzy had told him, Alec knew Helen was prone to worrying too much, and her worry had seemed less after Aline came into her life. They made each other better. Helen had helped Aline too, Alec had noticed. Aline had always been a bit socially awkward. She'd always been generally curious about everything, and sometimes that curiousity came off as rude. She and Simon had always been good at bickering, because both of them usually said just what was on their mind. But after she began seeing Helen, Aline began to be more at ease with her curiosity, and didn't insult anyone with her questions anymore. Perhaps they'd just all grown up somewhere along the way. As Alec was reminiscing he reminded himself that he had to make two characters based off the two of them in his next book.

"Izzy says you're finally writing that book?" Helen inquired.

"Yeah, I finally am," Alec shrugged.

"I'm glad. I remember when you won one of those writing contests, it was brilliant," she smiled.

"Thanks." Alec hadn't thought about the short story he'd written for a contest for a long time, since he had only been fourteen at the time, and it had really been Hodge who'd convinced him to turn it in. But apparently she remembered it. Aline, of course, was curious to hear what the book was all about and Alec managed to only make small hints at the plot, because he didn't want to tell them everything just yet. He wanted to intrigue his friends and he seemed to succeed.

At some point during their talk, Aline quickly grabbed Alec's shirt in a sudden move as she looked towards the entrance and stopped breathing. After a short moment of not moving, Alec and Helen were both confused, Aline started somewhat softly slapping him across the chest.

"Is that…?" she began. Alec followed her gaze towards the entrance and someone with the similarity of William Herondale walked in. He was dressed up as a gangster, with a machine gun hanging down the side of his pinstripe suit. "Oh my gosh, he's so gorgeous," Aline whispered. Helen and Alec both raised their eyebrows, but then he noticed Magnus across the room staring at the newcomer as well. It had to be Will.

"Shit," Alec breathed and put down his punch.

"What?"

"He was Magnus' first real crush, there's history there," Alec said in a low voice.

"Oh," Aline cocked her head a bit to study the guy. "I guess he has a type, huh?"

Alec frowned at her, and she just shrugged it off. Alec felt his pulse race suddenly. He hadn't expected to get this sort of reaction to seeing someone Magnus was once infatuated with. From the corner of his eye, he noticed that Woolsey was watching him. Alec wasn't sure if he read his expression right, but it almost looked as if Woolsey was pleading Alec not to make a scene. Of course, he wouldn't make a scene. But he did feel compelled to walk over and put his hand on Magnus' lower back in a possessive sort of manner, and so he did.

"Excuse me, ladies."

Alec got to his boyfriend before Will noticed Magnus was even there. He planted a kiss below Magnus' ear and whispered, "is this alright?"

"Why wouldn't it be?" Magnus wondered, just before Will spotted them.

"Magnus Bane, it's been a while," Will said.

"Will, how are you?"

"Marvellous, thank you," Will said and he still had an accent despite having lived in the States for a decade now and being married to an American woman.

"I'm sorry to hear about Jem. I hope he's doing alright?" Magnus said. Something in his posture made Alec aware of the tension between the two.

"His condition is improving. I'll say he's going to recover," Will replied. But Alec could tell from Will's tone that the guy did not like the topic, and that he'd practiced his reply in order to convince himself.

"That's good. That's really good, Will," Magnus said. Alec caressed Magnus' back softly. "This is Alec Lightwood." Alec held out his hand and Will pretended to only just see him now.

"Nice to meet you," Alec pretended as well.

"Likewise. One of Magnus' models perhaps?" Will eyed him for a second.

"Boyfriend," Magnus said to Alec's surprise. He was about to say it himself, but Magnus beat him to it. He wasn't sure why he hadn't expected him to say it so casually, but it relaxed him a bit.

"Oh, that makes sense I guess," Will shrugged. The words probably weren't meant as an insult, but that's how Alec received them. It made sense, because he was the less attractive copy of William Herondale. Alec suppressed his aggravation. "Well, I'll make a quick round and be on my way. I'm not really into the scene these days. You understand," he said.

"Give my best to Jem and Tessa," Magnus nodded politely. Will walked off, and Magnus put his arm around Alec. "Let's dance."

"What? No?" Alec grimaced, but Magnus didn't listen. He just dragged him out to the floor, where no one else was dancing. "It's not a dancefloor, Magnus," Alec said through gritted teeth. Magnus' grip around him was strong, and if he was going to get away from Magnus it would cause a scene, which was the last thing Alec wanted.

"Not yet. We'll make it one," he said casually and began dancing. Alec had rarely felt so uncomfortable before, but it helped when he saw that Aline dragged Helen out to the floor and Izzy pulled Simon with her. Soon the floor was filled with people dancing all around them, and he didn't feel as awkward anymore. Instead, Alec leaned his head against the side of Magnus' head.

"Are you alright?" he wondered.

"I'm fine." Magnus didn't seem fine, but it was clear from his tone that he didn't want to discuss it now.

Just before the song ended, screams broke out into the room and everybody stopped what they were doing. The light in the room went down, and the darkness was so sudden it was almost blinding.

"What's going on?" Alec asked. Magnus chuckled.

"Woolsey always has something planned," he replied. Music started louder than before, and Alec recognized the song immediately – _Thriller_. Woolsey had hired dancers. The crowd on the floor, including Alec and his friends, moved away from the middle and to the side to make room for zombie dancers. It was so cliché and so incredibly awesome to watch ten maybe twelve zombies break into _Thriller_ dancemoves at a Halloween party. Alec had never seen anyone dance like this in real life before. But it was much like the dance from the music video. When the song was almost over the zombies came nearer the audience, and Alec felt crept out when one of the zombies stared dead at him with white eyes, teeth showing where her cheek should have been and a bone sticking out of her arm.

"This is so creepy," Alec whispered.

"I know, isn't it great?"

"Are you sure she's not going to eat us?" he continued to whisper. The girl was closing in on them despite her limp.

"She does look hungry. Well, she can't have you," Magnus said, curled his fingers around Alec's wrist and pulled him away from the crowd and out of the room. He dragged him all the way out to the street, before he let go of Alec.

"Where are we going? What about the others?" he chuckled. He wasn't really sad to leave the party. He hadn't had the best time. Magnus looked at him with a smirk, before he pressed Alec up against the building. "Are _you_ going to eat me?" Alec wondered with amusement.

"I was thinking about it," Magnus shrugged. Alec dropped his amusement, as he remembered why he didn't exactly dread leaving the party.

"Were you also thinking about Will Herondale?"

Magnus let go of Alec, so they were no longer touching.

"Alec, my sweet Alec, if anything seeing Will made me even more certain about my feelings for you," Magnus said. But it made no sense to Alec. How would it even be related to Magnus' feelings for him? "Will is a heartbreaker, who has given his heart to only two people and will never be able to see anyone outside of that threesome. You are completely opposite him. You have so much love in you that you are able to share it with just about anyone, and there's really nothing more admirable in a person than that. Especially in a world like ours, where everyone is a moron from time to time. But you still want what's best for every single one of the people who cross paths with you."

"I didn't want what was best for Will, when I saw him tonight," Alec admitted. Alec had never been jealous like this before, it was nearly as bad a feeling as when he found out Magnus still had bordering pornographic photos of Will, Jem and Tessa. It was an ugly feeling that he just wanted to get rid of. Magnus took a step closer again.

"You know, I thought it was kind of sexy how you got all possessive in there, putting your hand on my back and claiming your territory," Magnus said in a seductive voice. Alec hadn't intended it to be sexy at all. It had been his instinct taking over.

"It sounds more like bad and ancient behavior. It's not me," Alec looked down at his feet.

"No. I know you were trying to protect my feelings. I know you wouldn't do the same had I been talking to any other person. It's a romantic gesture," Magnus explained. Alec took a deep breath.

"Are we going back in to get the others?" he asked, because he was done talking about feelings.

"I think they'll be alright. I thought I overheard Woolsey offering Izzy a job," Magnus smiled.

"It was very clever of you to invite them along," Alec sniggered. Woolsey had a way of making everybody his charity case and not make it feel like he was only doing you a favor. He knew Izzy would appreciate it, although he didn't know what kind of job Woolsey would have available for her. "I should say goodbye to Aline and Helen at least."

"We'll invite them out for brunch tomorrow, they'll be fine."

"You're very eager to get home?" Alec noticed. Magnus bit his lower lip, and it looked completely out of character considering his costume.

"You are a very handsome pirate," Magnus replied. Alec pulled Magnus against him and kissed him. His hands played with Magnus' dreadlocks, and Magnus' arms automatically went up around Alec's neck. "I kind of like your hair this long," Magnus breathed between kisses.

"I think I'll get it cut next week," Alec breathed. Magnus broke off and looked at him with horror.

"Please don't?" he pleaded. Alec thought he was joking and chuckled for a second.

"You're serious?"

"I love it. It's a good contrast to your blue eyes," his boyfriend smiled softly.

"Okay," Alec said a bit unsure. "Should we get home? Your dreadlocks kind of turns me on as well."

"I'm not keeping the dreadlocks," Magnus informed him and began looking for a cab.

"I wasn't asking you to. Not for longer than tonight anyway. I would like to know what it would be like to fuck Jack Sparrow," Alec teased. Magnus playfully bit down on Alec's shoulder, before he hailed a cab.

The drive home felt like forever. They were making out and both of them eager to get back home. Magnus was practically halfway on top of Alec, and they didn't stop making out before the driver cleared his throat very loudly. They apologized as they paid him, and hurried up the stairs, occasionally pausing to make out against the banister. There was so much fabric in Magnus' costume, and Alec had difficulty finding where to begin, so he just undid Magnus' belt on the way up the stairs, not letting his lips leave Magnus'. As they entered the loft, Magnus accidentally slammed the door and Alec looked up to see if it had actually closed or just slammed back up. It was fine. The door had closed. The bed seemed so far away, so he just pushed Magnus down to sit on the couch. He took a quick look at the layers of fabric, and decided it would be easier to just rip it off. Magnus was panting and about to complain, so Alec leaned down to kiss him again, while running his hands over Magnus' skin and it shut him up. Everything went very fast, and they were both acting like eager little teenagers. They hadn't even been roleplaying with their costumes, which Alec had imagined Magnus would have insisted on, but instead they were just both so turned on about each other's different look that they didn't have time to stop and think. They were both a bit tipsy from all the zombie virus and witches brew, but they were both very much into it and Alec took Magnus right there on the couch. And Magnus was panting and whimpering and moaning Alec's name, while Alec bit down on Magnus chest and shoulders wanting to leave marks as he did so often. He had begun to thrust into Magnus so roughly that he had almost escaped up the side of the couch, but his small sounds of pleasure told Alec that everything was fine and the man under him enjoyed every second of it. Alec climaxed faster than he had before, and his breath came out in small irregular moans as he couldn't control himself any longer.

"Holy shit," Magnus panted. Alec looked up at his boyfriend, who trying to compose himself still looked slightly amused.

"You didn't…?" Alec noticed Magnus didn't cum.

"No, but that was so hot. Come here," he said, and pulled Alec's face to his and planted a kiss on his lips. Alec leaned back into the kiss, and he reached down to give his boyfriend a handjob, while awkwardly lying on top of him. Magnus breathed into Alec's mouth and Alec caught every breath. Soon Magnus came undone under Alec's touch. Alec wanted to get up and get them a towel, before they could stain the couch any further, but Magnus pulled him back down. "Just give it a minute. We'll take a shower," he said in a low voice. Alec couldn't help but smile a bit, and kissed Magnus on the cheek. He really did look a lot like Jack Sparrow with all the make up on.

"Maybe you could save the dreadlocks for another occasion?" Alec suggested.

"Alec Lightwood, I think we found your fantasy."

"Dreadlocks?" Alec asked innocently. He knew exactly what his fantasy was after tonight – pirates, and more specifically, Jack Sparrow. But he decided it wasn't weirder than Magnus wanting to tie him up, so he accepted this new knowledge about himself. Magnus dressed as Jack Sparrow was his new fantasy.

* * *

 ** _I'm sorry it takes me so long to come up with new chapters. I have been busy the past week, but I am also starting to lack inspiration for some reason. It really helps when you guys make suggestions, even the smallest ideas might get me inspired and help me write chapters a bit faster. Next chapter will probably be about the bachelor party!_**


	18. Chapter 18

**Team Clary vs. Team Jace**

Izzy and Simon's new place was small, but it had a certain charm about it. They had conevinced Jace and Clary to come to New York for the weekend of their bachelor and bachelorette party, but they would have to stay with Magnus and Alec, because there weren't enough room for extra mattresses in Izzy and Simon's apartment. A few of their other friends had agreed to stay at hotels for the weekend, among them Jordan and Maia, Aline and Helen, and Helen's younger brother Julian and his best friend Emma, who was very good friends with Clary. Julian, however, had agreed to go with the boys for the night out, even though he didn't know many of them very well. He wasn't a shy person, he just didn't seem to need anyone other than Emma and his siblings. Emma must have convinced him to go.

The bachelor and bachelorette party had been planned out by the most obvious party planners in their group of friends – Izzy, Magnus and Woolsey, even though Simon and Alec was the maid of honor and best man, and even though Woolsey didn't know Jace and Clary, he'd agreed to help plan the party, since he owned various places throughout the city. Izzy had become particularly adjusted to one of his places. He'd gotten her a job at one of his 'clubs'. Perhaps it was more like a lounge, Alec had thought when he first entired the place. It was incredible, and it was totally Woolsey's style. It was all in British old fashioned surroundings, but mixed with a French Moulin Rouge sort of vibe. Izzy looked like she belonged in the place, when she was at work there. She would always wear a black dress or a burgundy dress with laces, it was sort of her look for the job and people seemed to love it. They had planned that both parties should end up in the club after their separate day, where Woolsey would make sure they had strippers to entertain the bride and groom to be, 'as any such party should end', he'd said.

Magnus had helped Alec set up everything for Jace's party, while Izzy had helped Simon with Clary's party. Alec and Magnus had decided that Jace should start at the loft with poker games and beer pong and cigars. They would make it out to look like a small casino. Then they would get picked up by one of Woolsey's limousines to go to one of his restaurants, where they would be served steak. By the end of the day, they would meet up with the girls to play a game of paintball, Clary's team vs. Jace's team, before the party at the lounge where Izzy was now working. Woolsey had helped with a lot, and Alec felt kind of bad for taking all of these favors from him, but Magnus had assured him that Woolsey was more than happy to help. Of course, Alec had invited Woolsey to the afterparty as a thank you and he'd kindly accepted the offer.

…

Alec and Simon were picking Clary and Jace up at the airport, so that they could separate them. Alec wasn't entirely sure what they had planned for Clary, but one of the activities involved Magnus' expertise with a camera, so he was going with the girls. Their two friends totally knew what was going to happen, when they arrived at the airport and were told they had to split up. Jace was smirking, and Clary looked at Simon suspiciously. Jace and Alec got their own cab, once they'd gotten Clary and Simon into one.

"Please tell me there'll be strippers?" Jace said.

"When did you figure us out?"

"When you called and invited us to New York only a week before the wedding," Jace said.

"Well, I'm just glad everyone was able to come here."

"Now about those strippers…" Jace continued.

"I don't know. Woolsey and Magnus arranged the strippers, so you know, it'll probably be male strippers," Alec teased.

"Yes!" Jace obviously knew he was teasing him. Although, there would probably both be male and female strippers, considering they were all meeting up for the club. It wouldn't be fair to Clary if it was all female strippers.

Once they arrived at the loft, everybody was ready to welcome them into the apartment, which now looked like a back room casino. Cards were ready on a green table. God knows how Magnus had convinced Camille to be their waitress for the next couple of hours, but she was running around in a cute waitress outfit, serving cigars and beers. Jace took in the entire scene, and seemed very pleased with everything. He quickly got a cigar in one hand and a beer in the other, before they all settled around a game of poker at the table. Alec was terrible at poker, and so was Jordan. From the very start they knew it would be between Jace, Aline and Julian. Alec didn't know Julian very well, but he and Aline were both surprisingly good with pokerfaces. They managed to trick Jace into believing he won, even though Alec noticed Aline would have won if she'd wanted to play her cards. Jace for once was clueless, but he would more often think that he was brilliant and a winner than admit to being terrible. They all felt like such adults, while smoking cigars. Julian didn't smoke, but to Alec's surprise Aline wanted to try it out and she looked even more comfortable with it, if possible, than Jace. Jordan kept coughing after every drag he took, but he refused to put it down, so Jace just continued to pat him on the back with support each time Jordan coughed.

Once the game of poker and a terrible game of beer pong were over, Woolsey's limousine was waiting for them down by the street. They were going to have steak and wine at one of Woolsey's restaurants, before meeting up with the girls. It was probably the fanciest restaurant Alec had ever been to, and once again it fit well with his image of Woolsey. It was dark, but not too dark for it to look extravagant. The steaks were perfect, and the wine was one of the best Alec had ever tasted. Jace, who usually swallowed his food and never appreciated this sort of gesture, suddenly studied his food as he tasted every bite of it. After each bite he gave a small sigh of pleasure, and Alec thought perhaps Jace like himself had never really experienced good food. They had grown up in a family known to be very bad at cooking. As far as Alec knew, Clary was just as accustomed to ordering fast food as Jace was, so it made sense that Jace appreciated this small gesture. Alec felt glad and a bit proud, because the steak and wine had been his idea.

When they had all finished dinner, they went out to the limousine, where they once again found new cigars. Jordan had finally given up, but Jace was up for another and Alec joined him only to please Jace. They drove to meet the 'girls' for a game of paintball. Clary's team was already dressed for the game and only waiting for the rest to join them. Jace looked like a child who'd just been told Christmas came early this year.

"Yes!" he exclaimed, when he saw his fiancé in a white suit and paintball gun in her hand. "I'm going to destroy you," he warned her.

"Right. What is it you used to say? To love is to destroy, and to be loved is to be the one destroyed? Well, I say – game on, biatch!" Clary said, not cracking a smile.

"Okay, Team Clary versus Team Jace," Simon said, as they all got ready for an intense game.

The game went as one would expect – Magnus, Jordan and Helen died first, eventually the final people standing were Izzy and Clary presenting Clary's team, and Alec and Jace presenting Jace's team. Alec knew Jace would be unbearable if he won, so he made a quick decision to let Clary shoot him. While Jace was chasing Izzy and finally got her, Clary was right behind Jace and she shot him in the back. Everyone was cheering on the sideline. Everyone was having the time of their lives. Every one of their friends were warriors at heart, when it came to a simple game of paintball.

"You shot me in the back!" Jace exclaimed. "In the back, Clarissa!" Everyone held their breath – he never called her Clarissa.

"You snooze you lose, tough guy," she replied. Clary wasn't afraid of Jace. But then he aimed his gun at her, she squealed and ran in the opposite direction. He shot her right on her butt, before she could find cover. "Argh! That's gonna leave a mark," she sulked as she looked at her blue ass, but her amusement showed.

"We should go clean up, before the next stop," Simon said.

"What's the next stop?" Clary asked with curiosity.

"It's totally a secret," Simon said, a bit offended she would even ask.

"We're going to a club," Alec admitted to Simon's great disappointment.

"Awesome!"

…

Woolsey was waiting by the entrance, once the party arrived. He looked particularly dapper this evening, Alec noticed, but he didn't comment on it. Inside he found the entire space emptied out for them to have their own party. Izzy went behind the bar, and Clary seemed touched by the gesture, she might even have seemed a bit nostalgic. It was like the good old days, when Izzy would serve them all drinks and they would have a good time at the bar.

Once everybody had a drink in their hand, Magnus got to the stage.

"I'm very pleased that you could all come to New York for the weekend. Now, Team Clary, as we call it now, have a small surprise for Team Jace," Magnus said and got down. The white wall at the back of the stage lit up. Alec quickly gathered that Izzy and Magnus must have convinced Simon to do the photoshoot after all. Everyone from Clary's party had done pictures in the style of high fashion, and they looked absolutely stunning. Emma and Helen had done a photo together, where they both looked very professional. They both had stunning beauty in each their own right. Emma was a tough girl, she never let anyone tell her otherwise. Here at the party she had put her hair up in her usual bun, but in the picture her hair was hanging wildly around her shoulders. She or Magnus had found her a pair of leather pants for the shoot and she looked rather badass. Helen in all her pale beauty was almost like the light shining next to the heroine. Izzy and Simon's picture came up, and it wasn't as bad as Alec would have expected. He hadn't even thought Simon would do a photo. It looked like an add for Valentine's Day cards, and despite his brotherly instinct, Alec was touched to see the way Simon looked at his sister, like she was the stars in the sky. By the look on Izzy's face it appeared he'd just said something funny. Simon was one of the few people who could really make her laugh. Maia's picture was completely different. Still, it was perfect for her personality. The next picture was of Magnus, which Alec hadn't expected. He looked professional, and it almost appeared to be taken while he didn't pay attention. Perhaps the girls had insisted on taking his picture against his will. Of course, to Alec he looked just as perfect as always. Alec smiled at his boyfriend across the room, and Magnus returned the smile with a playful look. The next picture was of the entire group. They all looked like one of them just said something funny, and they were all laughing just the same heartfelt laugh. And the last picture of course, was of Clary herself. Alec looked over at her, and she was blushing slightly. In the picture she was sort of covered by different fabrics, but it was pretty clear that underneath it she was naked. Still, it was an innocent look, and Alec was sure she was one of the few people who could pull it off and not look overly sexed.

"I'm gonna need that for my scrapbook," Jace said, and kissed Clary's neck.

"It was a small surprise. And I'll make sure to get everyone prints if you want them. Now, let's have a party!" Magnus said, and held up his glass to toast the bride and groom to be.

There were no other plans for a while, and everyone could just be themselves for the night. Maia came over to talk to Alec once everybody else was busy talking.

"Well, that was embarrassing," she shrugged.

"Are you kidding? Those were incredible. Imagine if Team Jace had been doing photoshoots," Alec knew Jace would be amazing at it, but he also imagined that things would get very silly very quickly.

"What did you guys do?"

"We played poker and smoked cigars," Alec said.

"That sounds so much cooler," she smiled. They both agreed that it would probably have been just as fun if they had all hung out together in a big group for the day, but it was tradition to split up the bride and groom, so they'd stuck with it until now. "Emma is pretty cool though," Maia said.

"Really?" Alec eyed her.

"Not like that. You know I'm trying to work things out with Jordan," she said in a hushed voice. "I mean, she told me she has a sword collection. How cool is that?"

"Congrats, you've found a fellow geek," Alec teased. Maia and Simon were his geeky friends. But he didn't know Emma very well. Although, he did know she really liked swords and for all he knew she could be into roleplaying games as well.

"I think it's cool. I haven't heard of a lot of young girls who collect swords and daggers. Except maybe from Lights, she's cool too," Maia shrugged, as if this was common knowledge.

"Who?"

"Lights. Canadian indie musician?"

"Right," Alec smirked. Indie music.

…

They were all getting pretty tipsy, when a few others entered the party. Once Alec recognized one of them, he realized it had to be Woolsey or Magnus who'd invited them. Also, by the look of their outfits, he figured they were the strippers. Raphael eyed Alec while walking past him in the direction of the stage.

"Someone taught you to dress better, I see," he smirked and moved past Alec before Alec could reply. Jace nudged Alec with his elbow.

"Dude, are those the strippers?"

"Yup," Magnus grinned. "Meet Lily, Elliott and Raphael Santiago."

"Raphael Santiago? Where have I heard that name before?" Jace wondered, while Clary and Izzy were looking at each other with ecstatic expressions. Jace eyed Alec. "He's the gay porn star, isn't he?"

"Yup," Alec said through gritted teeth.

"Come on, he can't be that bad," Izzy said and cheered, as music started and the three people on stage began to dance and strip. By the end of the show, the girl, Lily, went to give Jace a lapdance, and Elliott and Raphael was all over Clary. Alec couldn't help but think it was a bit ironic, because these were obviously queer strippers, but they were doing their very best to please the straight couple of honor. Of course, Jace loved every second of it, or at least he pretended to. Clary looked a bit awkward and freaked out, but she was also laughing. The night had been quite the success, but it wasn't over yet. They continued to party after the show. The strippers went to join the party, which Alec thought was a bit odd, because they'd already stripped for them. One incident was especially awkward, because the guy with dreadlocks, Elliott, came over to Alec. Alec awkwardly handed him a beer, because he didn't know what else to do. Luckily, the guy had put his clothes back on. But Alec had already seen him practically naked, rubbing himself against one of his best friends. One could not unsee such a thing. Although Alec also wasn't the type of person who just turned his back on someone who was only being nice to him, so he stayed and talked to the guy. Apparently Elliott was only working as a stripper to pay for college. He was an interesting person, who studied art. Alec told the guy about some of Clary's work, but the guy didn't seem interested in talking to Clary. He seemed very much interested in staying around Alec, and he felt relieved when Jace and Magnus came over after about thirty minutes with the guy. Magnus put his arm around Alec's shoulder and leaned in to kiss him passionately, which was odd behavior for Magnus to do in front of friends like this. Magnus' hand slid down and rested on Alec's lower back, before he turned his eyes towards a stunned Elliott. Jace looked at Alec suspiciously, but Alec just gave him the 'what?'-look, as best friends do. Jace and him had a way of communicating without other people noticing, and Alec soon gathered from Jace's look that both him and Magnus thought Alec was flirting with the stripper. It took Alec a moment to process the thought that Magnus might be jealous, but it suddenly struck Alec that Magnus was using the same possessive behavior Alec had at the Halloween party. He hid the smug feeling rising inside of him, and began to talk about Elliott like they'd really bonded.

"Elliott is studying at the New York Academy of Art," Alec smiled kindly. Magnus tightened his grib on Alec's back.

"That's very interested. Clary is a successful artist, maybe you two would get along?" Magnus said, and Alec detected a bit of resent in his voice. Jace frowned at Magnus, clearly noticing the tone as well.

"Yeah, Alec told me. It's really cool how most of your friends are artistic," Elliott said.

"I suppose we are artistic," Alec smiled. "Magnus is a photographer, Simon designs video games and plays in a band…" Magnus probably sensed where Alec was going with this, he was just about to suggest that Elliott hang out with them sometimes, when Magnus interrupted him.

"Alec is also very good at archery," Magnus said.

"That's so cool," Elliott replied. Alec almost thought he heard Magnus growl under his breath.

"He taught me how to shoot arrows too," he said in a cold voice. Elliott blinked in surprise at the sudden coldness, well, it wasn't all that sudden if you knew how Magnus usually acted.

"Magnus?"

"What?" Magnus looked at Alec inquiringly.

"Can I talk to you?"

"Of course, darling," he smiled triumphantly, and walked with Alec away from Jace and Elliott.

"What's wrong with you?" Alec accused, once they were away from everyone else.

"He was flirting with you?"

"So?"

"You were flirting back," Magnus said.

"I was being nice!"

"You were flirting, there's a difference," Magnus crossed his arms. Alec suppressed a laugh. "What?"

"I was messing with you. I thought it was funny," Alec admitted.

"Well, I didn't! It sounded like you were really impressed with this guy, and I know for a fact that your fetish is dreadlocks," Magnus sulked.

"I am impressed with him. He's putting himself through college with a stripper job. But give me some credit, I don't jump people just because they 'impress' me with their passion or their dreadlocks," Alec smirked, because the whole thing seemed kind of ridiculous and funny to him.

"You jumped me because I impressed you with my passion?" Magnus said flirtatiously. Alec bit his lower lip.

"Well, you are a very passionate person," Alec flirted back.

"Yes I am," Magnus kissed Alec's jaw.

"And I didn't jump you right away, remember, you were pretty busy being the city number one lothario," Alec said. Magnus stopped kissing him and looked into Alec's eyes.

"Yeah, that was a big mistake," he brushed Alec's hair back, while studying him, "because I knew the moment you told me Americano was a bad choice for coffee that you would somehow make your way into my life and change everything."

"Does this place have a back room?"

"Why?" Magnus asked with suspicion.

"You're going to make up for that mistake right now," he said. Magnus took his hand and they managed to sneak away from the crowd without anyone noticing. The back room was sort of an office, but also kind of a storage room for wine and booze. While Magnus looked to see if anyone was looking their way, and closed the door, Alec sat on top of the desk.

"We're going to have office sex," Magnus smirked as if he was surprised by this. He probably was surprised, and Alec didn't know what had gotten into him, but jealous Magnus was really hot. "Wait, we're not doing this because you just had a long talk with dreadlocks?"

"That depends on what you mean? No, I will not think about dreadlocks while you fuck me against this desk. Yes, you are very sexy when you're jealous," Alec admitted.

" _I'm_ going to fuck you?"

"Oh yeah," Alec replied and pulled Magnus close to him so he could unzip Magnus' pants. Magnus leaned down to kiss Alec desparately. He held the back of Alec's head in a firm hold, before he started to strip Alec down. He pulled Alec's shirt over his head, and once he'd pulled down his pants to his knees, Magnus turned him around to lean against the table. Alec gasped, when he felt Magnus prepare him with his tongue, he grabbed the table for support as he felt more aroused by every second, and he was soon ready for Magnus. His boyfriend's roughness made Alec moan louder than usual, luckily the music from the club outside drowned the noise they were making. Magnus reached around to force Alec's face to look back at him. It was an awkward position that he was still getting used to, but having his back to Magnus gave him better access to go deeper, and Alec felt every thrust hit his sweet spot. He panted and tried to stay in position, as Magnus kissed him on his lips, but it was getting difficult and his legs were getting shaky as he neared climax. Magnus bit down on his earlobe, and it nearly drove Alec over the edge, he didn't even hear the door open, as he cried out Magnus' name with pleasure and fell over the desk.

"Holy…! So sorry!" a voice said. Alec and Magnus both looked towards the door, where Simon was staring at them. Magnus didn't move, he just stayed in position. And Alec felt a bit too exposed, since he wasn't wearing as much clothes as Magnus was.

"Can you leave?" Alec suggested, his voice a bit higher than usual and he cursed himself for having spoken up so soon after an orgasm, and with his boyfriend still inside of him.

"Yes! Sorry. Well, shit, we need you guys," Simon said.

"Can it wait?" Magnus wondered casually. Simon covered his eyes in embarrassment.

"Raphael fell off the bar and he can't move," Simon said in a rushed voice.

"Can you give us a second?" Magnus asked.

"Of course. Sorry!" Simon slammed the door after him, and Alec realized he'd been holding his breath.

"Oh God. Oh god!" Alec pushed Magnus away and pulled his pants up quickly.

"Alec, baby, please don't freak out now?" Magnus pleaded. But Alec was already very much freaking out. Simon had heard him scream with pleasure, and seen the last second of Magnus fucking his brain out. There were bound to be jokes now, about Alec being the catcher, the bottom, the passive one in the relationship, because that was the kind of friends he had, and they probably wouldn't believe that in some couples you switch it up a little. "Alec!" Magnus pulled Alec out of his train of thoughts, and he looked up at the older man, a lump formed in his throat. He had difficulty breathing. "You're panicking."

"He chose the worst possible minute to walk in," Alec covered his face with his palm.

"He did probably hear you scream my name," Magnus smirked. Alec scowled at him with disapproval.

"I can't show my face out there."

"He won't tell anyone, but it has to be urgent with Raphael or he wouldn't have barged in like that," Magnus kissed Alec softly. Alec swallowed hard, and composed himself. He was still shaking on the inside, when Magnus opened the door and Simon was waiting just outside.

"Look guys, I'm so sorry. I will never speak a word of it to anyone," Simon promised.

"Of course you won't, it would be rather stupid of you if you did. Alec would find a place to hide your body, where no one would ever find you," Magnus smirked, and Alec rolled his eyes with contempt.

"Why didn't you just call an ambulance?" Alec wondered.

"We have, but I think Raphael is in pain, he keeps asking for Magnus or Woolsey, but Woolsey left awhile ago."

They went out to the group, who were gathered around Raphael, his back against the floor and staring at the ceiling.

"Raphael?" Magnus worked his way through their friends, and kneeled beside Raphael.

"I can't move," the boy said. "I think it's my back." Raphael didn't sound panicked, as Alec would have thought, he sounded calm.

"He sprained something and then he just fell down," Lily explained.

"Did you hit your head?" Magnus asked.

"A little." Raphael was so still, Alec thought it might be pretty bad, but he stayed in the back.

The ambulance quickly arrived, and Lily went with him, while Alec could tell Magnus felt a bit responsible and like he needed to go with him as well, but he stayed behind.

"He'll be fine," Alec brushed Magnus' back.

"Yeah, of course," he shrugged.

"Well, that sort of killed the mood," said a drunk Jace. "Maybe we should call it a day?" He pulled Clary into his arms for support to steady his balance.

"Good idea. I'll call for a couple of cabs," Magnus said.

…

"Where did you guys go?" Jace whispered, when him and Alec was setting up the mattress in the living room for him and Clary.

"We were there?"

"No, you left when Magnus got all jealous and shit," Jace continued to whisper, which Alec was grateful for.

"Yeah, I needed to cool him off. He's never been jealous like that before."

"Well, you are quite the catch, bro, of course he would get jealous, when you flirt with a stripper," Jace teased in his drunkenness.

"Of course," Alec chuckled.

"Anyway, it was the perfect day. I know Clary had a great time as well."

"That's good. Goodnight, Jace," Alec smiled and went up to Magnus in the bed. Magnus was looking at his phone, and Alec knew what he was worried about. "He'll be fine. I'm sure Lily will call if anything happens."

"He told me right after the 'show' that he broke it off with Ragnor the other day. It didn't work out with the long distance thing," Magnus said, still looking at his phone.

"Oh." Alec had had the impression that Magnus didn't like the relationship between his young friend and old friend.

"Ragnor told me a while ago that Raphael was teaching him Spanish," he shrugged.

"It didn't work out. It's none of your business, Magnus, and it's definitely not your fault," Alec said softly, because he sensed that Magnus still felt guilty for some reason.

"I know. I just thought Raphael hated me for what I said when I found out."

"He clearly doesn't. The little brat loves you, he just has a funny way of showing it. He'll be fine," Alec tried, and pulled Magnus into his arms.

"I'm so glad I have you," Magnus planted a kiss on Alec's chest.

"I love you too," Alec smiled.

"Aww, you guys!" Clary said from the living room.

"You realize you have a transparent wall and not a real bedroom, right? It's so quiet in here, we can basically hear everything you're saying," Jace said. They were both clearly drunk, and Alec was amazed that they hadn't made any noise, but apparently that's because they had been listening to their talk. "We should have a double wedding," Jace added.

"Shut up," Alec chuckled.

"That would be so much fun!" Clary agreed.

"Both of you shut up," Alec said, and Magnus chuckled while burying his face in Alec's shoulder.

* * *

 **I hope you enjoyed the bachelor party, even though I went through some of the activities pretty fast.**

 **One of you gave me the idea for jealous Magnus, and it was fun to work that into the chapter. Keep those little ideas coming, I love working them into my story! Next chapter will be the wedding :D**


	19. Chapter 19

_**I have really been looking forward to writing this chapter, and so it didn't take me long to write it. I hope you enjoy this cute wedding chapter :D**_

* * *

 **The Best Man Speech**

Alec wasn't sure why he was so nervous, but here he was, sweating in his new tuxedo, while Magnus tried to tie his tie for him so it was just perfect. He had checked to see if he had the wedding rings fifty times. He had practiced his best man speech hundred and fifty times. He should be all set for his best friend's wedding, but he still had sweaty palms.

"You'll be fine. It's a great speech, Alec," Magnus assured him. Alec gave him a nervous smile. He wasn't going to give the speech until many hours later, so it was stupid to sweat about it already. And he was only going to be speaking in front of people he knew and loved. Nearly everyone in his home town were coming to the wedding. It was going to be a perfect day for the soon to be married couple.

Magnus phone vibrated and he frowned at it as he read the text.

"What does Raphael want now?" Alec chuckled.

"He says, 'I am surrounded by idiots, this is all your fault. And you know I can't text Ragnor about it anymore, because I foolishly dumped his sweet ass'," Magnus read out loud. Raphael was still in the hospital, he had only sprained something in his lower back or hip or whatever it was, and he was in for a full recovery, but he still kept bugging Magnus about it, since it was he who had invited him to the "stupid party".

"Lovely as always," Alec smirked. He checked his pockets again, and Magnus smiled with amusement.

"You have everything, now let's go make sure you also have Jace."

"Right, the groom is nearly as important as the rings," Alec said and went out to the car. He and Magnus were staying at the family cabin for the weekend.

"Nearly," Magnus chuckled, and followed him.

…

Jace did not look the slightest bit nervous, and Alec had to taste his water to make sure he wasn't drinking something stronger to get this calm. It was all water.

"Are you okay?" Alec wondered. They were the only two in the room, because even though Jace had decided to invite Robert, he hadn't invited him to come earlier than the ceremony. And Magnus had gone to give his last minute fashion advice for Clary and the girls.

"I'm great, why?"

Jace was used to getting attention without having to do much to earn it, so of course he wouldn't have much of a problem with everyone in town staring at him for an entire day.

"Geez, are you alright? You look a little pale, bro," Jace frowned.

"I'm just… nervous. It's…" Alec sighed. It was really ridiculous to be more nervous than the groom, but Alec would be next to him all day. Alec had been next to him his entire life. He'd been in Jace's shadow for so long, and he should be comfortable with it. But Jace saw right through him.

"You wrote a best man speech?" Jace figured with a huge grin.

"Of course I did. It's my job."

"I can't wait to hear it," Jace said.

"Don't get your hopes up," Alec sniggered. He had been working so hard to make it just right. He was a writer for crying out loud, he should be able to make a touching and funny speech, but he still wasn't sure and he had still needed to consult the Internet for inspiration. Of course, Magnus thought it was a brilliant speech, but he often thought Alec was brilliant, so his opinion might be biased.

"No, I mean I can't wait. Read it now," Jace said.

"No! It's supposed to be a surprise."

"It won't be a surprise, you already told me you had a speech."

"It's tradition for a best man to have a speech. But the content will still be a surprise," Alec sighed.

"Fine," Jace said and sat down on one of the chairs in the room. They were waiting for people to arrive at the place. The ceremony was going to be outside, and everyone was wearing clothes suited for the winter air. Beside all the chairs and the wedding arbor where they were going to have the ceremony, there was a barn where they had set everything up for the perfect wedding party. It was all set on the country side near their childhood home, in a romantic winter wedding fashion. "Do you have the rings?"

"Do you think I'm an idiot?" Alec raised his eyebrows.

"I don't know. I do have a very specific memory of you in mind, where you told me you weren't my bitch, just because I asked you to…"

"I can carry rings, but I don't know how to make pie, Jace," Alec sighed.

"Okay, Frodo." They both laughed together one last time, before they had to move out to the wedding arbor to wait for Clary to walk down the aisle.

…

The ceremony was beautiful, but of course Alec had kept looking down at Magnus. Weddings had a way of spreading romance. But he managed to bring out the rings on the right time. Alec stood alone on Jace's side, and Simon had Emma, Maia and Izzy with him on Clary's side. Clary had explained that Emma was like the little sister she never had. Emma looked up to Clary and Jace, and Clary was happy to teach her everything she knew. Alec was also glad that Simon wasn't wearing a dress, although his tux matched the burgundy color of the bridesmaids' dresses.

The inside of the barn was gorgeous. They were all seated at a table formed as a U. Clary and Jace in the middle. Alec was next to Jace with Magnus by his side. Clary's mom was beside her with Luke, and then Simon. Maryse had been seated on the opposite side of the U of Robert, so they were as far apart as possible. Robert still hadn't spoken a word to Alec so far, but he had given Alec and Magnus a few glances throughout the dinner. Alec tried to ignore it. The man had disowned him as much as one could disown a son. He had nothing to say to the man. The only person missing was Sebastian, but no one had seen him since the accident and Alec was glad that he wasn't there, even though it must hurt Clary a bit that her brother didn't even show for the ceremony. Perhaps he had been there, Alec wouldn't have known, because he had been busy thinking about getting the wedding rings out at the right time and staring at his boyfriend.

Once people were done eating, and a few of them had refilled their glasses, Alec stood up. He thought he might as well get it over with. He cleared his throat and got everyone's attention. Jace gave him a conceited smile.

"As the best man, I have prepared a speech for the newly-weds. But before I start, let me just say that the formative years I spent in the company of the groom means that he had as much of a part in developing my sense of humour as anyone. So, although I have tried to make this speech both as nostalgic and funny as possible, please blame Jace if it's not. Jace came into my life at a very early age. As fate would have it, unfortunate circumstances made him my adoptive brother. I know Max would also have loved to see you today, you were his 'cool' brother, and Clary was like a second sister to him," Alec had to clear his throat, and everyone was perfectly quiet as he composed himself. Jace gave him a pat on the back. It was the toughest sentence in his speech, and that's why he chose it for the first part, he wanted the speech to end on a good note. "I am convinced that if I hadn't had Jace by my side throughout my life, I would not be the man I am today, and I certainly would be twice as popular. Jace is very good at stealing the spotlight, but despite his constant insulting, yet charmingly sarcastic comments, Jace is a great friend and he's always there to give me advice. He's always looking out for me, and I know he didn't choose me as his best man as a favor to improve my chances with the bridesmaids," Alec said, giving a small nervous chuckle, while a few other friends laughed at his gay joke, "as a groom often does, but you chose me, I hope, because you know I'm always looking out for you as well. He also instructed me not to speak for more than three minutes, so you know, he's also looking after your interests. Clary," Alec turned to look at his small redheaded friend, "you agreeing to marry Jace, has taught me an important lesson. That stalking, harassment and general unpleasantness will eventually pay off. Jace tried for so long to win your heart, and I'm very happy that he finally did. I have never seen him happier than when he's with you. And seeing my best friend happy will always make me happy, so you know, if you hurt him, run for your life," he winked at Clary and she nodded with a grin. "I love both of you very much. Welcome to the family Clary. Let's have a toast," Alec held up his glass and everyone joined him and held up their glasses waiting for Alec to make his toast. "There are obviously two very important people here today, without whom very little of this would have been possible. And the great thing is that as the evening goes on, most of us will spend more and more time talking to them. So please join me in a very special toast –" Alec turned towards the bar in the corner of the barn as he spoke, "to the bar staff!"

People laughed, and some repeated his words "to the bar staff!" with great joy.

The party seemed to get better after he'd finished his speech. Alec didn't have anything else to worry about, and he could join all of his friends on the dance floor as they all started to float the floor once Clary and Jace had had their first dance as a married couple. They were all back in high school again, dancing on the floor to 4 Non Blondes and singing along in unison. Simon had made sure to complain about Alec's joke on not wanting any chances with the bridesmaids, because when he was drunk Simon usually thought himself to be quite the catch, and if you tried to convince him otherwise he would pretend to be highly offended. It was always the same, but despite the joking around, Alec had to admit to himself that Simon was the person in his life who was the coolest about his sexuality. Not everyone was comfortable enough around him to joke about it like that.

…

After an hour of non-stop dancing with his friends, Alec needed something to drink, and his father caught up to him at the bar.

"It was a great speech, Alexander," Robert said. "You're very good at speaking in front of everyone. People listen to you."

Alec blinked for a moment. He hadn't expected that. He hadn't expected that his father hadn't noticed how nervous he was during the speech, and he definitely hadn't expected him to give him a compliment.

"Uhm… thanks," Alec replied and took a sip of his margharita. Robert frowned at the drink. It was something Magnus had taught him to drink.

"I always knew you had it in you. I thought you would be a great politician, but maybe that ship has sailed," Robert glanced at Magnus. He obviously didn't think gay people made very good politicians. Alec frowned.

"I'm a writer. I write books now," Alec said, instead of objecting to his father's insult.

"Really? I guess that makes sense too."

Alec didn't know if this could get any worse, and he was just about to leave, when he looked up towards his friends on the dancefloor and saw Sebastian enter the party behind them by the entrance. All blood drained from his face, and he quickly put down his drink so he wouldn't drop it. Robert turned to look the direction of Alec's gaze, and froze as well. Soon Alec felt Magnus by his side. He'd probably noticed Alec's mood instantly, like he always did, despite being across the room on the dancefloor with the others.

"Alec, sweety, let's go," Magnus whispered to him. Alec swallowed hard and looked up at his boyfriend. Magnus' eyes were filled with compassion. "We need to cool off." Magnus glanced over at Robert, whose hands were in fists now. "You too," Magnus added and dragged them both outside through the back door. Alec breathed in the fresh air and it cooled his face a bit.

"That son of a bitch!" Robert exclaimed.

"Hey, that's Jocelyn you're talking about," Magnus warned him. Magnus had always liked Jocelyn, it clearly wasn't her fault that Sebastian had turned out the way he did, when Clary had grown up to be a sweet and caring person.

"What makes you think you have a right to be mad? You left us. You didn't just leave me, you left all of us," Alec said as calmly as he could. Robert looked down at the ground.

"I…" he began, but looked up at Magnus. "I'm glad he's found you. I've seen the two of you interact throughout the day, and you are very good to him, Marcus is it?"

"Magnus," Magnus frowned with disbelief.

"Magnus," Robert repeated and shook Magnus' hand. Alec rolled his eyes.

"Look, Sebastian is Clary's brother. He should be here," Magnus said, once he had recovered from Robert's kindness.

"He obviously thought he was guilty if he disappeared for months," Alec said.

"He should at least have been questioned," Robert agreed.

"How about not ruining Jace and Clary's big day?" Magnus suggested. Alec looked at his father with defeat, the look was returned. They both sighed with disappointment and nodded in agreement, but Alec was going to stay as far away from Sebastian as possible. "Good, are you okay to come back inside then?" Magnus asked. They both nodded again.

Inside was chaos. Clary was yelling, which Alec didn't think he'd ever heard her do before, and they entered just in time to watch her slap her hand across Sebastian's cheek as a way of finishing scolding him. Sebastian kept a straight face.

"I'm sorry, Sis. I didn't mean to disappear on you like that," he said. The entire barn was quiet, and everyone could hear everything they said now.

"You fucking idiot!" she said, and embraced her older brother. He held her in his arms, still keeping a straight face, he looked over her shoulder and his eyes met Alec's for a second. Despite his stone face, his eyes said everything – he reeked of misery. The look in his eyes told Alec that he was suffering enough, so he decided to let it go for now. Still, he kept an eye on the guy for the rest of the evening.

…

The winter night was gorgeous. A few others had made speeches, amongst them Simon who'd been quite awkward (even before he got drunk), but he had also been his usual dorky self. And Luke had made the speech as Clary's stepfather, which had been a very happy and heartfelt speech bringing tears of joy in everyone's eyes. He'd talked about how he'd always felt like a father to her and he wanted her to know he would always love her as one.

Now they were sending off wedding lanterns as the last event of the day. Clary and Jace disappeared some time during the send off, and Alec knew where they were going for their honeymoon, because he had helped Jace arrange for a car and a hotel room in Vegas. It was a bit atypical for a honeymoon to go to Las Vegas, but Alec also knew Clary had wanted to go for a long time, because despite being an artist she was amazed with all the replicas of all her favorite architectural constructions.

When everyone was on their way back into the barn or on their way home, Sebastian came over to Alec and Magnus. Magnus took Alec's hand in his, but Alec wasn't worked up anymore. He'd watched Sebastian be miserable the entire evening. Now that Sebastian was close to him, he would almost guess that he hadn't taken a shower in days, because he smelled terrible.

"Alec, I'm so…" he began.

"Save it. I don't care," Alec sighed.

"You don't?"

"I mean, I don't care what you have to say. Running off was a shitty thing to do," Alec said. Sebastian ran a hand through his already ruffled white hair.

"Are you telling me you wouldn't have killed me if I'd stayed?"

"I would have wanted to. I did want to," Alec shrugged. Magnus squeezed his hand, and Alec felt it was a gesture of proudness.

"I know we've never been friends, but Max was a great kid, I should have been more careful, I should have…" Sebastian said. Alec felt tears press against his eyes. Sebastian had always been good with words, but he seemed to be at a loss. Alec swallowed his anger, pulled his hand free from Magnus', and held it out for Sebastian. The guy was stunned for a moment, he looked at Alec's hand before he took it.

"I don't want Clary to miss her brother too. That said, don't think we'll ever be friends," Alec took back his hand and walked past Sebastian before he could respond. Magnus followed Alec inside, where they quickly said goodnight to his mother and sister, before they left for the cabin.

Magnus didn't say a word before they reached the cabin, he probably didn't dare to as Alec didn't say anything either.

"I'm really proud of you, Alec," he finally said as he closed the door to the small country house. Alec didn't respond. His mind was still fried from the entire day. It had all been completely overwhelming with different emotions. He'd been overwhelmed with joy of seeing two of his best friends getting married. He'd been overwhelmed with surprise when his father came up and basically gave him and Magnus his blessing. He had been overwhelmed, and still was, with anger when he'd seen Sebastian. Still, he had refrained from making a scene, and he wasn't sure if it had been the look in Sebastian's eyes or if it was simply because it had been his best friend's wedding, but something had clicked inside his mind and told him that Sebastian wasn't worthy of his concern or anger anymore. "I don't think I could have refrained from beating the light out of him," Magnus added. Alec swallowed and looked at his boyfriend. He was so beautiful in his deep purple suit with black collar and black bowtie. Not to talk about the sparkles from all the glitter he had in his hair, which framed him perfectly.

"He didn't have any light I could beat out of him anyway," Alec shrugged, his chin trembling. Magnus noticed instantly and strode across the floor to wrap his arms around Alec, as tears began to pour out of him. "I'm sorry," Alec murmured against Magnus' shoulder. He was soaking his expensive suit.

"Don't be sorry, please don't be sorry," Magnus hushed him. When he found the strength, Alec moved his arms around Magnus' waist in a tight grip.

"I'm soaking your tux," Alec mumbled.

"Oh that. Well, good thing you're not wearing makeup then, or I would have had to destroy one of your sweaters to make us even," Magnus replied. Alec chuckled half-heartedly and pulled his head back a little. He had controlled his breathing now. Magnus' support was always a big relief and it always helped to be in his embrace. Alec wiped his fingers over the wet spot on Magnus' shoulder caused by his tears, and began to play with the black collar of the tux jacket.

"It wouldn't quite make us even, would it? You look way hotter in this tux than I do in my sweaters," Alec began to flirt. He didn't want to spend the entire night feeling sorry for himself. He wanted to take advantage of the romantic feeling he had inside after a long day at a beautiful wedding. He wanted the day to end on a good note, even if it was past midnight and technically the next day.

"That's true," Magnus agreed. Alec chuckled, he lifted Magnus' chin up a bit with his fingers and kissed him softly. Magnus was soon in the mood for more and breathed against Alec's lips as his pulse quickened. "I've craved this all day, since I watched you make that speech," Magnus said as he came up for air. Alec kissed his neck and began to unbutton his boyfriend's shirt, while Magnus continued to talk. "That's a lie. I always crave you. Something about the way you love everybody is so attractive," Magnus breathed. Alec bit down on his earlobe.

"Are you sweet talking me?" Alec whispered in his ear.

"Do you want me to continue?"

"Yes please," Alec smirked. He pulled Magnus over his shoulders and carried him three steps to the couch in the living room, where he threw him down.

"Careful, you'll ruin my tuxedo!"

"Take it off then," Alec retorted, and proceeded to take his own tux off. Magnus did as was demanded of him and leaned back down on the couch. Alec lay down on top of him, careful not to rest entirely on Magnus' body. He wanted to tease him first.

"The couch is kind of itchy?" Magnus shrugged apologetically. Alec looked around and reached for a blanket to place underneath him.

"Better?"

"Yeah," Magnus bit his lower lip and pulled Alec down for another kiss. Alec brushed his lips over his skin down to Magnus' throat.

"Please continue the sweet talk," he murmured in between kissing and sucking on Magnus' skin.

"I love seeing you happy, I never want you to feel unsatisfied… and sad…" Some of Magnus' words came out as more of a breath each time Alec touched him in a right place. He was practically panting once Alec got to the hem of Magnus' underpants. "…I never want you to feel unwanted," Magnus breathed as Alec pulled down his pants and Magnus was already hard.

"I can tell I'm very wanted," Alec smirked. Magnus rolled his eyes. "Do continue."

"I would say the same to you," Magnus raised an eyebrow. It gave Alec an idea.

"As long as you keep talking, I'll keep touching you, if you stop talking, well, I'll stop touching," Alec challenged.

"Okay. Okay," Magnus had to think now. Alec loved how he could make him lost for words. He quickly ran into the bedroom to get the lube and came back out to continue what he had in mind. "You're the most amazing person I know…" Magnus continued. Alec began to pump Magnus with one hand, while using his other hand to massage his ass and prepare Magnus. Magnus was once again panting words out, sometimes random incoherent words, while Alec simultaneously pumped him and filled him with three fingers. The older man was squirming underneath him, and it got Alec excited too. Magnus didn't even have to touch him, although his growing hard-on was throbbing for a touch, he didn't do anything about it just yet. He wanted Magnus to beg for it. "…and you deserve the entire world to know just… fuck… Alec," Magnus whimpered, as Alec hit his prostate with his fingers. Alec looked up at his boyfriend and noticed his eyes had rolled back in his head. Alec stopped touching him, and Magnus pulled him up for a deep kiss. "I need you to fuck me, babe," Magnus whispered against Alec's lips.

"Will you scream sweet things as I make you cum?" Alec smirked.

"Yes. Please, just fuck me… hard," Magnus begged, and his head fell back on the arm of the couch. Alec pulled Magnus' legs over his shoulders and pressed himself against Magnus, he went slow at first, but he was soon thrusting so fast Magnus had to hold on to the arm of the couch under his head for support. "I love it when you groan softly in my ear…" Magnus stammered, "…because of how it makes you feel… to be inside me." Magnus' eyes were closed, but Alec continued his fast pace desparate for more, knowing Magnus would tell him if he crossed a line. He had stopped speaking, and instead his voice came out in a mix of whimpers and moans. He felt Magnus tense under him suddenly, he grabbed Alec's arm firmly, "Alec, slow down," Magnus exclaimed. Alec stopped instantly, despite being so close to oblivion. Confused, he studied Magnus, who seemed to be trying to catch his breath.

"What did I do?" Alec wondered nervously.

"It was just a bit too… fast for me," Magnus panted. Alec suspected he'd wanted to say 'rough', but wanted to spare Alec's feelings. Embarrassed by his own eagerness, he leaned down and planted a kiss on Magnus' nose, and waited for Magnus to relax again. He found a slower pace after that, and it quickly drove Magnus over the edge, and Alec allowed himself to cum right after.

Alec found a second blanket and pulled it over them, as they lay on the couch. He had never sweat so much during sex, and they would quickly be cold if they didn't cover themselves up. Perhaps it was a result of having sex so close to the fireplace, or perhaps it had been his impatience for more.

"I'm really sorry. But hearing you talk like that really made me…"

"Horny?" Magnus offered. Alec grinned, and began to trace patterns on Magnus' chest with one finger.

"I'm sorry," he muttered.

"Stop apologizing," Magnus sniggered, running a hand through Alec's hair. "It was really hot, but I need a slower pace to get me there in the end, I suppose," he shrugged.

"Good to know," Alec turned his head and kissed Magnus' chest. Magnus' breathed in the smell of Alec's hair, it sounded like a deep sigh, and he could feel Magnus slowly getting hard again. Alec smirked, even though he knew Magnus couldn't see his expression, and he moved to kiss one of his nipples. It certainly didn't take a lot of effort to get him in the mood today. "Really? Again?"

"Hey, it's not something I really have control over. I mean, you are naked, and on top of me, and sucking my nipple," he explained. It almost sounded as if he was accusing Alec of being the one with control over him.

"Maybe we should move to the bed this time?" Alec suggested.

"Let's just stay like this a little longer," Magnus wrapped his arms around Alec so he couldn't move away. "It was a really beautiful day."

"Yeah, it was," Alec agreed.

"Do you think…" Magnus stopped himself. Alec pushed himself up, against the force of Magnus' arms holding him down.

"What?" he wondered. Magnus chuckled nervously.

"Nevermind," he shook his head.

"Tell me? Or I won't fuck you again," Alec challenged.

"Would you let me fuck you?"

"No."

Silence. Magnus was placing his words carefully.

"Do you think it will ever be us?" Magnus asked. Alec's heart was suddenly racing faster than normal, and he gave a small nervous laugh.

"Magnus, gay marriage is legal now," he tried to act as if he'd misunderstood the question, because for some reason he wanted to hide that he had thought about it too.

"Are you saying we don't have to wait?" Magnus raised an eyebrow, and Alec suddenly realized how his fake misunderstanding could be misunderstood, and blinked with utter lack for words.

"That's… no?" Alec scrambled off Magnus, and Magnus sat up next to him on the couch. Alec needed to buy a minute to find a proper way to respond, so he leaned in and kissed Magnus in a long and sweet kiss. "I'm saying," he began, still holding Magnus' face close to his, resting his forehead against Magnus', "that if you want it too, then I really want to marry you someday," and he looked into Magnus' eyes; they were full of emotion. They were both quiet for a moment. Magnus didn't say anything, but eventually he leaned back and composed himself.

"Well… you'll have to make one hell of a proposal to make it a surprise, because now I know you want to marry me eventually," Magnus teased.

"Deal," Alec smiled.

* * *

 _ **I don't have much planned after this chapter, but as you know I'm always thankful for any kind of suggestions.**_

 _ **I will probably work on a proposal chapter at some point, but I think I want to make a Christmas and New Year's Eve chapter first, is it still too soon for Christmas chapters? ;)**_


	20. Chapter 20

**Aunt Sophie**

Alec woke to the smell of something burned. He wandered out into the living room and found Magnus in front of the fireplace wearing one of Alec's flannel shirts and his long johns. He had to suppress a laugh, and cleared his throat. Magnus turned around with a sad expression plastered across his face.

"I thought it would be cool and romantic," Magnus shrugged. Alec moved closer to see where the smell came from – he had actually burned toast in the fireplace. Alec covered his smirk with his hand, because Magnus looked truly unhappy with the outcome of his plan to make toast over the fire. He looked kind of sexy in a lumberjacky way despite the glitter in his hair from last night, and it took Alec back to when he'd first taken Magnus to his family's cabin.

"You were making toast?" he asked through his fingers.

"I was making French toast," he sulked, and Alec couldn't hold it back anymore, he broke out laughing. Magnus cracked a smile.

"It's fine. We're going to have brunch at my mom's anyway," Alec smiled.

"Oh, right. I forgot. Well, do you think I'm properly dressed for brunch?" Magnus posed in his unfamiliar outfit.

"You look perfect," Alec said, and moved over to kiss his boyfriend on the floor. Magnus pulled him down against him, so he was pinned against the floor with Alec holding him down with his body weight. Alec soon found that Magnus might actually get turned on by simply being on the country side in a small cabin with him, because as they were kissing on the floor Magnus' hands soon started to wander down Alec's back and down his underwear. Alec leaned up to look at the man under him. "We had sex all night?"

"I like it here, it's away from all the stress and all I have on my mind is you," Magnus said smoothly.

"Well, maybe you'll get some after brunch. Unless of course…" Alec hesitated.

"What?"

"Izzy might have made plans for us," Alec shrugged. He had really enjoyed the night they'd had, but he was kind of exhausted and he didn't want to admit it to a guy who was nearly a decade older than him. "But we should get ingredients for s'mores later. It's easier to make on the fireplace than toast," he added, and Magnus' smile was back again.

…

Brunch was something else. Alec had expected his aunt Sophie to be there, because she had stayed with his mom after the wedding. But he had not expected his father to be there, he'd thought he stayed at a hotel or something. Yet, there he was, sitting at the table next to his mom's seat. He decided not to raise any questions right away as he was too surprised when he entered the dining room. Instead they just sat down next to Izzy and Simon, while Maryse set up the last few things for the table.

"Did you make this, mom?" Alec wondered. "Please don't tell me Izzy helped you?" He grimaced, and Izzy hit him on the arm, causing him to yelp.

"You two are still the two young kids that I had on vacation for two weeks every summer when you were little," Aunt Sophie smiled. He had always enjoyed their summers at Aunt Sophie's, and he knew Jace and Izzy had too. Sophie had always given them a lot of freedom. Alec felt a bit guilty for not having had much time to talk to his aunt the day before. He had, however, gotten around to telling her how gorgeous she looked yesterday. It was sort of their thing, he told his favorite distant relative that she looked amazing, and she told her distant nephew that he needed to get his eyes checked, and telling him how great he would look with glasses.

"We only tease each other because we looove each other. Right, brother dear?" Izzy smirked.

"Sophie helped me. With brunch. So you are all safe to eat," Maryse interrupted.

"Well, it looks delicious," Alec smiled at his aunt.

"So, who do you think will be the next lucky couple?" Aunt Sophie wondered after a while of eating in silence. She eyed Izzy and Alec. Simon almost choked on a piece of pancake, and Alec felt his face heat up, since him and Magnus had very recently discussed it. "Not a very good topic for brunch apparently," she smiled with victory. Sophie was one of the sweetest and warmest people Alec knew, but she loved to tease them as well, in her own loving manner. Rumor had it that she'd had a difficult start at life. She'd worked as a babysitter to help pay the rent at home, but one of the people she babysat for had an older son, who wanted to take advantage of her, when she turned him down he'd gone mad and attacked her. Now she had a scar across her cheek, from where he had cut her. Another family rumor says that Alec's uncle Gideon was the one who really saved her by showing her real love. She had always cursed her scar, because the boy who'd cut her had convinced her it would make her ugly and no one would ever want her. It had done quite a trick on her mental health, but Gideon took his time to get her to see herself through his eyes. Alec often wished he'd gotten to know his uncle, but he'd died only months before Alec was born, leaving Aunt Sophie with three small children. Alec's parents had decided to honor his memory by passing on his name to Alec. Sophie had sometimes told him that he reminded her of Gideon, but Alec had never believed it, because they looked nothing alike. It wasn't until he was older that he realized she hadn't talked about his looks.

Alec realized Magnus was very quiet next to him. He had only placed his hand on Alec's thigh. It was Magnus' way of stepping back a bit or toning down his usual outgoing personality, because he didn't want to do or say something to cross a line during family dinner.

"I forgot to ask, did you take some photos of all the couples and families yesterday, Magnus?" Maryse wondered. Magnus hadn't overdone his part as a photographer, he'd been very discreet and laid back and Alec had barely noticed. Jace and Clary hadn't exactly asked him to be their photographer, because he was their guest first, but he'd brought one of his smaller cameras anyway.

"Yes, I made sure to get all couples," Magnus smiled.

"What about you two?" Izzy said a bit devastated that she'd forgotten. Alec had heard her promise she would take his and Magnus' picture, but Simon had stepped in instead. A lot of people had taken pictures, and Alec was sure there were other photos of them.

"I got to try out Magnus' camera," Simon said a bit proud.

"Really? How did I miss it?" Izzy said in a flirtatious voice, running her fingers through his hair. Robert cleared his throat, and she dropped her hand again.

"I brought my old camera, so I got a few good ones of all of you dancing together," Robert said. Everyone was too shocked to say anything for a moment.

"That's great, dad," Alec finally found it in him to smile. Was Robert actually trying to be a part of the family again? He looked at his mom, and noticed she was smiling softly at her plate.

Alec didn't get to raise the question of whether his parents were suddenly working something out, before Maryse got up to clear the table. Everyone was done eating and Sophie left her chair to go help with the dishes. Alec followed her to the kitchen. "How long are you staying, Aunt Sophie?"

"I'm only here for two more days," she smiled.

"Magnus and I are going home tonight, would you like to join us for s'mores at the cabin today?" Alec suggested.

"I would love to," she gave him a hug. "You're such a handsome young man," she said, and looked towards Magnus at the table, "and such a handsome boyfriend," she added in a whisper.

"I guess I got really lucky." Alec knew he was lucky. He'd never felt this surrounded by love before.

…

Alec had invited Izzy and Simon as well, because he didn't want to take the opportunity to spent time with their aunt away from his sister, but she and Simon were spending time with Maryse and Robert, so they stayed behind. They were going to take the same flight back to New York as Magnus and Alec, because Simon also had work Monday morning.

The fire had gone out when they got back to the cabin, so Alec had to start it up again. When he had finished, Sophie and Magnus were giggling like school girls beside the kitchen table.

"What are you girls giggling about?" Alec wondered.

"Magnus told me about your cat."

"You told her he sleeps on my face, I see?"

"I also told her that he sometimes farts," Magnus grinned.

"This is what I have to live with, Aunt Sophie," Alec sighed.

"Poor little Alec. I'm sure you're loving every second of it," she winked.

They went to make s'mores in the fireplace, getting marshmallow all over the place, while talking about everything. Alec was still worried about the fact that Aunt Sophie had never remarried, but he was afraid it wasn't a topic he should bring up. Uncle Gideon had been her one great love.

"Magnus, did you know that Alec got his middle name after my husband?" Sophie asked suddenly.

"No, no I didn't. What is it?"

"Gideon," Alec replied.

"He died a few months before Alec was born." Sophie brushed Alec's hair back in a motherly way, like she'd done so many times when he was younger and he'd had ruffled hair.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Magnus said, and put his hand on Alec's. It wasn't as nice a gesture as one would think, because Magnus' hand was covered in marshmallow and it made his skin stick to Alec's. "Wait, I think we're stuck together." All three had a short giggle.

"I'm really glad you've found someone you love, Alec. I admit I was worried whether you ever would, when you were younger. You always stayed in Izzy and Jace's shadows," Aunt Sophie said.

"Didn't you ever find someone to love after Gideon?" Magnus asked what Alec had been wondering. She looked down at her hands smiling.

"No, it never felt right," she shrugged and looked up at Magnus. "Do you ever feel that Alec sees right through you? Even when you think you're hiding it so well?" Magnus blinked.

"Yes," he said a bit taken aback.

"That's how Gideon made me feel."

"Tell us the story about how you first met," Alec suggested, because he knew Magnus would love the story. Aunt Sophie put down her marshmallow stick and settled into storytelling position.

"I was working at a small town bakery slash coffeeshop. Every day Gideon would come in to order scones and coffee. He would sit in the same spot everyday, and everyday he would drink the coffee and suddenly leave when I didn't see it. One day I found a whole scone in the trash just outside. So the next day I went to look again, and he continued to throw away his scones each day. I was furious. Those were good scones, I made them myself. And so one day, I decided to confront him. He came up to order the usual and I asked him, 'why do you order the scones? I know you throw them out anyway?' and he looked at me for a moment, before he said, 'forgive me, Miss Collins,' how he knew my name I didn't know, 'I did not mean to show you disrespect. I come here every morning, because of you, I don't actually like scones,' he said. I was so surprised, I said, 'because of me?'. 'Because you are one of the finest ladies I have ever laid eyes on'. At this moment, you can imagine that I put my hand to my cheek and turned the scarred side of my face away from him. He didn't like that, and he took my hand away from my face and held on to it," Aunt Sophie told the story, and Magnus' eyes were tearing up a bit as he listened. "That day he convinced me to have a picnic with him. In the afternoon we went out, and throughout the entire date he was a perfect gentleman. He even settled with a small kiss on my cheek, when we said goodnight." Sophie pointed at her scarred cheek, where uncle Gideon had kissed her the first night.

"That is a beautiful story," Magnus said, wiping away a tear from his cheek.

"We dated for a few weeks, before one day he, on a whim, told everyone we were going to marry."

"Just out of the blue?"

"I couldn't very well say no, now could I?" she smiled hugely, but then it turned into a small expression of sadness. She took a deep breath and looked at Alec. "How did you two meet?"

"Would you believe we met in a coffeeshop?" Magnus asked.

"It's the place to meet, apparently."

"I had just arrived in New York, and it was a bit overwhelming, so I had decided to just pass through. I got in to the coffeeshop for a break, Magnus walked in and ordered an Americano, which I think I made a comment on," Alec began to explain. He had never told their story in details like this before, like he was telling a story, but he sort of enjoyed it now.

"When I dismissed you, you followed me out into the street to ask directions for the Empire State Building, which was right behind us," Magnus continued.

"Oh gosh, that's right," Alec covered his face with his hand in embarrassment.

"It was adorable. I thought you were such a hillbilly, but a charming one at that. And those blue eyes…" Magnus took a deep breath. "So I gave you my card, just hoping you would call me. I knew you were checking me out, so my hopes were high."

"I don't think I would have called you if it wasn't for you forgetting your wallet in the coffeeshop. I thought it was a sign," Alec smirked. Aunt Sophie was listening with interest to everything they said, her eyes shifted between the two of them as they each added more to the story.

"As soon as you called me I decided I would devote the rest of my day for you. My client was a no-show that day, and I needed something to take my mind off things."  
"You looked happy and perfectly calm when I came to give you your wallet? You didn't look like someone who needed to have some _hillbilly_ take his mind off things?" Alec wondered.

"I was just about to throw a tantrum, but then you walked in and saved my day," Magnus shrugged. "I was so scared of the feelings you brought up in me even though we'd only just met, so I hooked up with two girls that night," he admitted. Alec had never heard this side of the story.

"But you fell asleep," Alec sniggered.

"I faked it. I didn't want to go through with it, when you were in the living room. You can say I had a change of heart. A part of me wished you would have joined us, and another part of me was glad that you didn't," Magnus said in a small voice. He was admitting things Alec had never known about. He felt his cheeks flush, when he remembered his sweet aunt was staring at them. Alec cleared his throat and composed himself.

"That's some story," Sophie smiled. "A few of the Lightwood men have had the ability to change something in you. My husband and Alec are two of them," she added.

"I've noticed," Magnus suppressed a grin.

…

It was tough somehow, to say goodbye to his favorite aunt. He'd done it every year when he was younger, but as he grew older it had become more difficult. He didn't know when he would see her again anymore. At least when he was a kid, he knew he would visit her every year around the same time. When he'd kissed her goodbye on the cheek, she'd whispered in his ear to remember her once he was the one to make wedding invitations.

Now the four friends were on the plane back to New York. Exhaustion had finally caught up to Alec, and he was half asleep in his seat next to a stranger. But when the seatbelt sign went off, Magnus soon stood beside the stranger's seat.

"Excuse me, sir?" he said. Alec and the guy next to him both looked up at Magnus. "This here is my manager, and I was really hoping to have a long talk with him before we land in New York, you see we have a meeting there in the morning. Would you mind switching seats with me?" Magnus asked. The guy was stunned for a moment, but then he got up and went to find Magnus' seat.

"You could have just gone with the 'I'm afraid of flying, can I please sit next to my boyfriend' excuse, instead of that lame story no one was buying," Alec smirked and leaned his head back against his chair.

"He could have been a homophobe. He looked like he would be," Magnus said in a low voice.

"So he would give up the seat more willingly to get away from me," Alec shrugged.

"Whatever. Babe, I was thinking about something," Magnus began. Alec had already closed his eyes again to fall back asleep, but he was still listening to Magnus talking. "If you propose with that Bruno Mars song I will end your life," Magnus said casually, as if he was reminding Alec to buy coffee next time he went grocery shopping. Okay, that was probably something Magnus would say if he forgot to buy coffee.

"What song?" Alec opened one eye to look at Magnus.

"I feel like it's called 'Marry You'?" Magnus wondered at the top of his head. "Anyway, it's the song where he's bored and he just wants something fun to do, so he'll just go ahead and marry you. It's so unsentimental, and I get sad every time I see a video of someone proposing with that song," Magnus shuddered.

"Noted," Alec replied, and tried to go back to sleep.

"Also, don't do a flash mob, I feel like you would be terrible at it," Magnus continued. Alec sighed deeply, and straightened up. He could sense that he wasn't going to get much sleep during this flight.

"Okay?"

"No offence," Magnus added.

"You're messing with me, right?"

"I'm messing with you. I know you would never do either of those things," Magnus leaned in to give him a kiss on Alec's shoulder.

"I need you to not mess around about it though," Alec said as casually as he could so he wouldn't hurt Magnus' feelings. "I take it seriously. I don't know when I'll be ready for it, but I want it to feel right, okay?" Alec looked into Magnus' eyes, and he looked touched. Alec wasn't sure it was even normal to discuss a proposal with your partner like this, and obviously Magnus was making fun of the situation, but it made Alec feel a bit pressured.

"Of course," Magnus replied, and kissed Alec softly. Someone cleared their throat next to them, and they both looked up at the flight attendant.

"This is a family airline," she said, as if that was some meaningful information she'd just provided them with.

"Noted," Magnus replied with annoyance. The woman disappeared and Magnus looked at Alec with a deep sigh. "You would think all kinds of families were travelling by plane, but it seems we're the first gay couple ever to travel with this one. Do you think they would mind if we eye-fuck for the rest of the trip?"

Alec got an idea, it was probably a terrible idea, but he sensed Magnus would love it. He leaned closer to his boyfriend, putting his flirt on and whispered close to his ear.

"How do you think they would like helping us get a membership to the mile high club?"

Magnus looked at him with wideeyes.

"What, I can't have scandalous ideas?" Alec wondered. Magnus leaned closer and whispered in an even lower voice.

"I am so turned on right now, just for you to suggest that. I think those restrooms are a bit crowded though, and they might hear us and throw us off the plane, so how about we just go out there and I give you a blowjob?"

Although Alec knew it was a horrible idea, he couldn't help but grin and follow Magnus down the aisle to the restroom in the back of the plane, which was currently occupied. The two of them did nothing but stare at each other, while waiting. They were both worried someone would tell them to stop holding hands if they even touched each other. The restroom was occupied for a while, but they didn't give in. At least not until the door opened and Izzy and Simon came out with a bit of difficulty due to the small space. Izzy was adjusting her dress, and Simon's hair was ruffled. Alec stood frozen for a second.

"No. No!" he exclaimed with disappointment and walked back down to his seat, hearing Izzy giggle as he turned his back on them. Magnus was right behind him with a big smirk across his face. "Stop smiling, that was not funny."

"It kind of was though," Magnus grinned. "How about a handjob here in the seat instead?"

"Do not touch me," Alec warned, but he couldn't keep a straight face, and he cracked a smile. "I don't think that would actually help our case," he added with a chuckle.

"You're probably right. Gosh, you are so smart, babe," Magnus teased.

…

Waiting for their luggage was awkward. Simon was especially awkward, it seemed like he was constantly about to say something, but thought better of it.

"Come on, Alec. You're not really mad that we had sex in the restroom?" Izzy sighed, breaking the silence.

"It just seems that straight people are the ones who can't control themselves," Alec shrugged.

"What does that even mean? Are you saying you guys weren't back there waiting to get the restroom for yourselves?" she crossed her arms, as if it would help prove her point.

"We needed to use the restroom," Alec tried.

"You never used it!"

"Because my sister had sex in there!" Alec said, before he realized a few people were staring at them. "It's a family airline, that's all I'm saying."

The last comment seemed to hit home with Magnus, and he sighed before joining the conversation.

"The stewardess told us off when I gave him a kiss, while we were perfectly quiet in our seats," Magnus explained.

"What?! For real? They are getting such a bad review on tripadvisor, that's for sure," Izzy said, and Alec knew she meant it too.

"It's fine. Whatever," Alec shrugged. "I thought I could get revenge."

"Right on, getting blown in the restroom would have been perfect revenge for that comment," Simon said in his best 'I-got-your-back-bro' attitude. Naturally, Alec shot him his best 'dude-I'm-not-your-bro' look back at him.

"It was disrespectful, Alec. I'm sorry that happened to you guys," Izzy said, giving Simon an accusational look herself.

"It's fine," he shrugged, and grabbed his and Magnus' luggage.

…

Chairman Meow didn't seem to have missed them. He was sprawled on the couch with none other than Raphael, once they entered the apartment.

"I'm gonna kill Camille," Magnus said through gritted teeth.

"Magnus! Alexander!" Raphael cheered, when he noticed them. Alec dropped their bags on the floor.

"Is he… cheerful?" Alec whispered.

"Camille didn't want to take care of me at my place and then go all the way over here to feed the cat all the time, so she moved me here for the weekend," Raphael explained. "This is a great cat. I love cats," he added and stroked Chairman's head. The small cat seemed to enjoy it, which was as good as any explanation to Alec.

"Good. That's good. Well, we're home now, so I'll get you a cab," Magnus said.

"The doctors told me not to move more than necessary," Raphael added. "Can I please stay here till tomorrow?"

"You have literally avoided my place ever since I met you. You stayed with me for a week, and since then you've avoided this place. What is wrong with you?!"

"I'm really high on painkillers right now?" Raphael looked like he was trying to shrug, but it didn't work for him due to the injury.

"That explains a lot," Alec shrugged.

"What, you're fine with this?" Magnus gestured towards Raphael.

"I'll get the better mattress. You probably shouldn't sleep on the couch with a back injury," Alec said.

"Aww no, am I not going to sleep between you guys tonight?" Raphael complained.

"You would like that, wouldn't you?" Magnus rolled his eyes, and left for the "bedroom".

"Alexander, my friend Elliott says hi," Raphael winked.

Alec went to help Magnus get an extra set of covers and the mattress. He was finally ready to get some sleep, which he had been looking forward to for half a day. Chairman Meow stayed to keep Raphael company, and perhaps Alec wouldn't be rudely woken up by the cat sitting on his face the next morning.

"It was a really beautiful weekend," Magnus whispered. Alec turned to put his arm around his boyfriend. "I really like Aunt Sophie," he added.

"She told you to call her Aunt Sophie, didn't she?"

"Yup."  
"I love her too. I just hope she's happy," Alec said.

"This is a really heartwarming conversation, but I don't know this Aunt Sophie character, so it's also a very boring conversation," Raphael said from the living room.

"Goodnight, Raphael," Magnus chuckled.

"Alexander, did you know I'm the reason he got those God awful half-transparent walls?"

"No I didn't know that?" Despite being incredibly tired, he was a bit amused by the entire situation.

"I was thrown on the street and Magnus made me stay here, but he also wanted his privacy so he got these half-assed walls, as if it would separate the living room from the bed."

"I didn't make you stay here. You were pretty screwed, you ungrateful…" Magnus said, but Alec brushed his boyfriend's hair to calm him down. He wasn't really mad, Magnus was just tired.

"Thank you," Raphael said in a low voice.

"Did he just…?"

"Thank you, you old bastard," he repeated a bit louder.

"I think that's all you're going to get," Alec smiled in the dark. He knew Raphael would never repeat himself once he was off the painkillers.

"I'm in shock, to be honest."

"It's probably the painkillers anyway," Alec smirked.

* * *

 **I hope you enjoyed the chapter. The wedding chapter might have been a bit rushed, so I didn't get to include more characters as guests, and I'm trying to make up for it with this one. Also, I just really love Sophie, I mean, who doesn't?**

 **Like always, please feel free to leave comments and suggestions :)**


	21. Chapter 21

**All I Want For Christmas…**

"Babe, what do you want for Christmas?" Magnus called from the bathroom. It was a bad habit he'd acquired. He would be in the bathroom, getting ready, and calling out for Alec, instead of just stepping out of there to ask the question.

"I don't really know," Alec said with his indoor voice.

"What?" his boyfriend called out. Alec looked at Chairman Meow, who had placed himself in front of his food bowl as a way of communicating his current need.

"I bet all you want for Christmas is the most expensive brand of cat food, isn't it?" he asked the cat and poured something into the bowl. Magnus popped his head into the living room.

"What do you want for Christmas?"

"I don't know. I guess all I want is to spend it with you," Alec shrugged, and petted the cat on the head, while the grey cat ate from the food bowl.

"Well that's an easy present. I would have given that to you anyway. I usually spend Christmas alone," Magnus said casually.

"Wait, what?"

"Sometimes I go to Woolsey's if I feel like it, but not every year," Magnus explained. It nearly broke Alec's heart. To him Christmas was the greatest time of the year for the family. It was the one time of the year when the family were together, but this year half the family was in New York and Jace and Clary were their own family now. It was going to be different this year, Alec knew that, and he was completely fine with it, because he was going to spend it with Magnus. Alec walked over to his boyfriend and wrapped his arms around him. He smelled so good right after the shower, because he always got the expensive shampoo.

"Maybe we shouldn't give each other presents? We don't really need anything?" Alec suggested. Magnus probably wasn't even used to getting Christmas presents.

"Maybe we should just think about it for a while, and get back to it. There's still some time," Magnus shrugged.

"Okay," Alec agreed. He kissed Magnus' throat, and he rewarded Alec with a soft moan.

"Alec, I have to go to your sister's. I'm already late," he breathed.

"Izzy's?"

"We're doing Christmas baking. We want to get out of your way so you can get your last work done before Christmas," he shrugged.

"That's adorable," Alec teased.

"I'll bring you cookies," his boyfriend smiled flirtatiously.

"All I want for Christmas is your cookies," Alec flirted back. Magnus chuckled.

"Okay, how about this, we continue to say things that works with 'all I want for Christmas', and eventually something is bound to give the other one an idea of what to get for Christmas, even if we were only joking?"

"Sounds good."

…

Magnus brought him cookies alright, and he gave him more than that. Alec had worked hard all day to go through as much revision as possible, in order to have a quiet romantic evening with his boyfriend. Alec had been writing a sort of 'behind-the-scene' sequence with his and Magnus' characters in order to get the characters just right in the book, where they weren't exactly the main characters. It had ended up being quite a hot scene, and he'd realized it might be because Magnus and he hadn't really been intimate since the wedding. It hadn't been that long, but it also hadn't been willingly, because Magnus had worked his ass of with all the Christmas and New Year's photoshoots he needed to do before Christmas, and he hadn't had much time to do anything other than work and sleep. But now he was finally off work until after Christmas.

Once Magnus came home from Izzy, they'd had a quick dinner and then Alec had prepared dessert, which quickly turned into something unexpectedly hot with both of them licking whipped cream off the other. Alec had never thought sex with food would be something he was into, but Magnus had just put whipped cream on Alec's nose and everything had evolved from there. Suddenly they were both naked, Magnus had brought the whipped cream with them to the couch and was licking it off Alec's body. In his mind Alec was making the situation Christmas related, and thought he might as well be a human gingerbread man, had it been glace and not cream. And the cream wasn't even the hottest part about it; Alec was groaning, there were biting, and clawing, and Magnus was riding him in a way that not only turned Alec on, but it gave him a different kind of pleasure than their usual positions. Soon Magnus came on Alec's chest, and lay down on top of him, his skin feeling clammy against Alec's.

"I think we need a shower," Alec sighed.

"Shh, not yet," Magnus said and wrapped his arms around him tighter. "I thought about something."

"Yeah?" Alec kissed the top of his boyfriend's head.

"All I want for Christmas is a time machine," Magnus said.

"Come on, be serious. You know I was serious about the cookies, right?"

"I am."

"Don't tell me – you want to go back and experience that orgasm again? There are easier ways, it's called 'round two'," Alec smirked.

"I want a time machine, so I can go back in time and help my mom," Magnus replied in a small voice. Alec pushed Magnus up a bit, so he could look at him.

"Magnus," he said, because he didn't know what else to say. He'd been completely fine a minute ago, more than fine actually, moaning and gasping for more. Alec sat up and placed Magnus comfortably on his lap.

"I'm sorry, I killed the mood. I don't know why I got emotional suddenly," Magnus was on the verge of tears and Alec embraced him tightly. He wished deeply he could take away this feeling Magnus was having. Alec couldn't begin to imagine what it would be like to spend so many Christmases without family. Alec came from a big family. It would be tough enough to spend his first Christmas without Max.

"What can I do?"

"You can't do anything. I just get emotional around this time of the year, because everyone is with their family, and it was the one time my mom and I had a day outside of the house together, without my stepdad, when we went Christmas shopping," Magnus explained.

"You realize I am your family now, right?" Alec wasn't sure Magnus saw it that way, and he wanted to make sure. "We'll have our own family Christmas. Just the three of us, if you want?"

"Are you including the cat, or is there a third member I don't know about?"

"I'm including the cat," Alec replied.

"Good to know that I didn't knock you up," Magnus attempted to joke, but his attitude wasn't really in it.

"Please, as if I would be the pregnant one," Alec teased. He was glad that at least Magnus was trying to make light of the conversation.

"It's tempting though, but I couldn't ask you to give your family traditions up, I'll be fine with whatever your family has planned," Magnus said, getting them back on track.

"We could go to Woolsey's Christmas party?"

"You don't really want to go to Woolsey's?" Magnus frowned.

"I don't really want to go to Woolsey's," Alec smiled apologetically. Magnus looked at him and Alec already knew what he was thinking; Magnus was grateful for Alec's understanding. Alec had always had the best intentions with everyone close to him, but somehow Magnus was the only one who always seemed to realize he had a need to fix everything and protect everyone from being lonely and miserable, like Alec had so often been when he was younger, and before he met Magnus.

"We can ask my family to come here?" Alec suggested.

"Izzy told me she and Simon are going home for the holidays. Maybe we should just go with them?"

Alec thought about it. They'd seen his entire family only weeks ago, and he really was kind of busy as he neared his deadline. He needed to have the full script ready in January. He couldn't take that much time out of his calendar, to be with his family for days like he usually did.

"I have a deadline. Maybe it is best if we stay here in New York? We'll make new traditions?"

"Yeah?"

"Yeah," Alec kissed Magnus softly.

…

It amazed Alec how Magnus was still able to bring out the butterflies in his stomach, when he looked at him a specific way, or when Alec had comforted his boyfriend somehow and brightened his day. It gave Alec an idea. Maybe he could make an extra effort for those new traditions. Sure, he wasn't going to spend time with his family, but he was making a new family. Maybe it was time for Magnus to get in contact with his remaining family. Surely his father couldn't be as bad as Magnus had insinuated. Magnus wasn't even sure what his father did for a living or why his mother had been afraid of him. And then there was the fact that it had been thirty years. People usually change over the passage of three decades. Even if he hadn't changed much, the worst Alec could find was Magnus' father in prison or dead, right?

It took him a few hours just to find out the name of Magnus' father. It was an odd name, but it seemed familiar somehow. Although, Alec couldn't be sure where he would have heard the name A.S. Modeus before.

Magnus was out Christmas shopping with Izzy. Alec had convinced Magnus that he needed some time at home to come up with a Christmas present for Magnus, and surely he was now expecting a sonnet. All Alec had in mind was a small acrostic poem, but first he needed to get some more information about this A.S. Modeus, and hopefully get Magnus an even greater gift – the gift of family. Alec knew it would take a while to search out this person, if finding his name took him several hours. So Alec quickly scribbled down a letter for Magnus, and it wasn't his finest moment, but he stuck with it and placed the letter in the red velvet blazer with small silver snowflakes, which Magnus was planning on wearing this Christmas.

 _L ove the way you changed everything, when you walked into my life._

 _O ur roads crossed, and now we walk down the same path._

 _V alid is the feeling you give me every morning, when I wake up next to you._

 _E motions flow when I think of you, and I'm glad 'love' is only a four letter word._

 _P.S. this is not my proposal, but merely a small taste of it._

 _Yours always,_

 _Alec_

…

He continued his search on A.S. Modeus. Alec wasn't the best, when it came to cyberstalking, so he had to call Simon a few times, eventually Simon had had enough.

"Dude, this is not a person you want to continue stalking," Simon said. They were on facetime, so that Alec could search, while Simon guided him on his computer. "This guy was questioned in several murders, but miraculously found not guilty." Simon narrowed his eyes at his screen, as he continued reading. "Dude…"

"Simon, stop calling me dude?" Alec rubbed his eyes with frustration. This was not what he'd hoped to find. It wasn't what anyone would hope to find.

"Sorry, man. I have a feeling this guy has Viola Davis on speed dial," Simon shrugged. Alec shot him a tired look. "Sorry, that's the leading lady in _How To Get Away With Murder_." Now Alec covered his entire face with his palm. "Wait!" Simon began.

"What?" Alec looked through his fingers with a small amount of hope, like maybe the guy had donated a good amount of money to cancer research. The smallest sign of goodness was good enough for Alec by now.

"Some of these missing people he was questioned about were rumoured to be his children. How many bastards do this guy have?" Simon wondered. Alec reflexively closed his jaw so tight he could hear his teeth nearly crack. "Sorry again, I didn't mean Magnus was a… sorry."

"Is there anything good about this guy?" Alec wondered. Simon had now taken over the entire research, because Alec was beyond reading the miserable information on his laptop. He needed to hear it and not read it.

"He's married?"

"Married?"

"Yeah, to a woman named… Lilith? Isn't that the name of the first demon ever? Like according to myth?" Simon wondered.

"That seems very likely," Alec sighed. "Well, thanks for helping out. Please don't tell Izzy and Magnus about any of this. I'm sure it would only make everything worse."

"Sure thing. I got your back."

"Right. Merry Christmas, Simon."

"Merry Christmas," Simon replied with a huge smile as if he'd nearly forgotten that it was Christmas, and Alec hung up before he could say anything else.

Alec summed up what he'd found out about Magnus biological father. He'd found a few pictures of the powerful business man, who with his pale skin looked nothing like Magnus, except from the eyes – his eyes had the same green-yellow color like Magnus'. He had married a just as powerful business woman, and they had several unsolved cases about their morals within the company and cases about disappearances of their people, some of them supposed children of A.S. Modeus. Alec felt a slight panic attack reaching the surface. The idea of Magnus finding out about this person who seemed more and more like a donor than anything else was so disturbing, eventually Alec ran to the bathroom, thinking he would throw up, but ended up only splashing cold water in his face. How could he look Magnus in the eye during this evening – Christmas eve – without revealing that something was wrong? Something horrible was wrong, and it was going on only blocks away. That's right, A.S. Modeus worked and probably also lived on Wall Street. When he looked at his face in the mirror, Alec looked pale, almost ill. He needed to get it together and go erase his entire search history, in case Magnus borrowed his computer in the near future.

When he came back from the bathroom, Magnus was in the living room. Alec hadn't heard him come in, but he was frozen in front of the open laptop. It was clear that he had difficulty finding words, even though the questions were evident in his heartbroken expression.

"Magnus, I thought he might have changed, but you were right, he's not a man you want a relationship with," Alec began to apologize.

"How dare you?" Magnus seemed more heartbroken than angry, which Alec felt was way worse.

"Magnus, I'm sorry, I'll let it go, I'll never bring it up again," Alec begged for his forgiveness.

"I was perfectly fine knowing my father was an asshole, this is not something I can be okay with knowing," he gestured towards the laptop. Alec took a step closer, buying time to think of what to say. Magnus held up his hand in warning. "Stop, I don't want you near me right now."

"Magnus?"

"I'm going to Woolsey's. Don't follow me!" He grabbed his Christmas blazer and left the apartment. Alec was left with a feeling of immense shame and embarrassment.

It was Christmas eve, his sister and Simon were on their way home to visit the family. Magnus was gone, he'd gone to see the only other people Alec knew in New York. Alec was alone on Christmas. He'd never felt lonelier than this, and he knew it was all his own fault. How could he be so thoughtless and inconsiderate? He should have trusted Magnus when he said he didn't have any interest in knowing his father. Alec's own father suddenly seemed like quite the saint. Robert might have his moments, but deep down he wasn't a bad person, he was only ignorant at times.

Christmas was nearly unbearable. Even Chairman Meow didn't want his company, and had gone to hide in one of his castles. Alec didn't know what to do. He'd tried calling Magnus a few times, but he'd ignored the calls. Then he'd tried Woolsey, who'd kindly told him to give Magnus some time, and then offered Alec to send Raphael over instead. Of course, Alec had politely declined the offer. Although, he might have considered it had Woolsey suggested he sent Camille over instead. Suddenly he found himself wishing for that time machine, especially when he found a letter addressed to "Santa" on the floor halfway under the couch. Magnus had probably dropped it, when he noticed the laptop. Alec opened it carefully to read:

 _Dear Santa_

 _At the beginning of this year, all I did was party and work and party. I felt like I was going nowhere, and I was miserable. But I met Alexander Lightwood (yes, that's the hotter Lightwood), and he made me significantly less miserable. In fact, he's been so nice this past half of the year I think you should give him the biggest presents of them all. I don't have anything specific in mind, and I'm sure whatever you find won't be nearly enough, but I hope you take this into consideration when picking out a gift for him – I love him._

 _Sincerely,_

 _Magnus Bane_

At the back of the letter was a drawing of a Christmas tree and what was probably meant to be the two of them making out under a mistletoe, but Magnus wasn't really much of an artist with a pen and paper. Alec couldn't hold back the sob that escaped from deep within, wishing Magnus was there so they could actually make out or just make up underneath the mistletoe. He would have to give the drawing to Clary for her to make a proper version of it, because it was a beautiful scenario. He tried calling Magnus a few times after that, while drinking the two bottles of wine they'd bought to share for their Christmas dinner. He even left a few embarrassing voicemails, once he'd nearly bottomed both bottles of red wine.

Eventually, he must have fallen asleep on the couch, looking at photos of Magnus on his computer. Because he woke up when it was light outside, and the TV was playing Christmas carols. Alec's head was about to explode, but he rolled off the couch and dragged his feet towards the bathroom to take a warm bath. He looked at his phone every five minutes, nearly dropping it into the water several times, as he soaked in the bathtub. He didn't really deserve a long warm bath. He deserved a cold, teeth-clattering shower, and he deserved spending Christmas Day alone. He stumbled out of the bathtub, went to put on a sweater and a pair of long johns, before once again settling on the couch in front of the TV to watch the countless Christmas shows. Was it too early for a glass of Scotch? Alec had never felt so useless and miserable before, and he was beginning to doubt that someone who had left him alone on Christmas Day would ever forgive him.

But then, Alec's Christmas miracle came – Magnus stepped through the frontdoor. He didn't look hungover, which was the first good sign Alec noticed. But then he soon drew to the conclusion that it was because Magnus was in full control of his emotions and ready to throw Alec out. Alec straightened up, but the hangover prevented him from rushing to his feet. Magnus stopped once he'd stepped through the door.

"You look like hell," Magnus said casually, as if he couldn't care less. The coldness in his voice sent shivers through Alec's body, and he forced himself to stand up.

"I feel like hell," Alec admitted. Magnus' eyes shifted to the empty bottles on the coffee table.

"Did you have company?"

"No, just me. I'll get you a new bottle… or two," Alec said. He went to get his jacket, but Magnus caught his upper arm.

"Don't bother. I don't feel like drinking today anyway," Magnus said. Alec placed his hand on top of Magnus'.

"I'm sorry that I hurt you, Magnus. Please believe me when I say I had the best intentions in mind, when I began searching," he explained.

"I know you did. That's what hurts so much. You always have the best intentions in mind, and that only makes it so much worse. You hurt me, Alec."

Alec thought he might well fall apart right then and there at Magnus' feet, but then something in Magnus changed; his expression softened.

"I found your letter, or poem or whatever," he said. "Are you sure it isn't a proposal?"

"If I thought I might lose you I would marry you right now, on the spot," Alec admitted.

"But you don't think you'll lose me?"

"I found your letter as well," Alec said. "Neither of us wants to be without the other."

"That doesn't really sound like a good basis for a relationship?" Magnus now had tears in his eyes, as if he was trying to convince himself that the relationship wasn't working, because of this one mistake. Alec imagined the struggle inside Magnus' head – was he thinking that Alec had broken his trust, that he should have trusted Magnus when he said he didn't want to know his father? It seemed about right. Alec had no idea what had gotten into him, but he sure was going to try to explain it.

"I should have trusted you, when you said you didn't want anything to do with your father. It wasn't my place to investigate him like that. I don't know how many times I can tell you I'm sorry. It just made me incredibly unhappy to see you sad about your mother and Christmas, I wanted to give you some sort of family. It was obviously my worst decision ever, and I wish I could go back and change my decision, but despite our wishes I'm pretty sure neither of us will get a time machine for Christmas," Alec said. Magnus' expression didn't change. Alec's time machine joke even seemed to fall through.

"You wish you could take it back?"

"Yes!" Alec reassured him. It appeared to be the wrong answer, because Magnus dropped his eyes to look at his feet.

"You're afraid I possess some of his… traits?"  
"What? Of course not!"

"Then why do you care?"

"Because you care! Because it hurts you!" Alec thought this was quite obvious. Magnus nodded once.

"Merry Christmas, Alec," Magnus said, sadness clouding his words. He left for their bed and didn't give Alec another look. Chairman Meow came out of his hiding place and quietly ran to keep Magnus company. Even the cat blamed Alec for screwing up Christmas. Alec wanted to do everything in his power to make it up to Magnus again. If being his slave was what it took, then a slave he would be.

* * *

 **I know a lot of you probably enjoy my representation of Malec for their adorableness, but I got bored with them never having any "real" issues, so I created one. I hope you still enjoyed it, I think I'll make another Christmas chapter, before making it up between them (this time from Magnus' perspective), because I think his perspective on the matter would be interesting.**

 **As usual, I love your reviews! They are still my main source of motivation :D**


	22. Chapter 22

**Christmas Eve**

Magnus was stunned. He'd known his father was a bad man, but this went beyond his imagination. Alec had done a good deal of research, and it felt like the biggest betrayal Magnus had ever been exposed to. He thought he'd been clear, when he told Alec he had no desire to know his father. Maybe his refusal to acknowledge a father had been what spiked Alec's curiosity. Magnus felt a deep void inside his chest as he finished reading the open page on the laptop. He hadn't needed to read much to just get the worst of it. It was all laid out there, as if ready to be revealed to him. Had that been Alec's intention? He didn't think so, when he noticed Alec come out from the bathroom with a shocked expression. He hadn't intended Magnus to ever find out.

"Magnus, I thought he might have changed, but you were right, he's not a man you want a relationship with," Alec said. Magnus' head was spinning. He'd just found out what kind of man he shared genes with, and as if that wasn't enough – so had his boyfriend. How could Alec ever look at him again?

"How dare you?" Magnus asked, he felt his emotions well up inside him.

"Magnus, I'm sorry, I'll let it go, I'll never bring it up again," Alec said in a rushed voice.

"I was perfectly fine knowing my father was an asshole, this is not something I can be okay with knowing," he replied. Alec took a step closer, but Magnus couldn't bear to have him any closer. "Stop, I don't want you near me right now."

"Magnus?" Alec looked heartbroken, but Magnus needed to get away. He'd never felt so violated. Was the look in Alec's eyes a sign of compassion for where Magnus came from?

"I'm going to Woolsey's. Don't follow me!" Magnus took his Christmas blazer and left the apartment. Woolsey's would be packed with people soon, but Magnus couldn't help but think all kinds of company would be better than Alec's right now.

He quickly found an available cab and went straight to Woolsey's. He hadn't even gotten a present for his friend, as he usually did when he planned to spend Christmas Eve with him. Woolsey had a big party every Christmas, and Magnus was always invited. This year Magnus had declined the invitation, and Woolsey understood why. He only hoped he would understand when he showed up anyway.

Magnus felt a lump in his throat, and tears in his eyes, when he rang Woolsey's doorbell. Woolsey was there to open the door himself, and he seemed too busy to notice Magnus' mood right away. Instead he just waved him inside, while instructing workers to do individual jobs.

"Magnus, come in. Merry Christmas," he said, while watching one of his people setting up a huge Christmas ball in the hall.

"I'm sorry to come here unannounced…" Magnus began, but he could hear his own voice quivering and stopped himself, before he could embarrass himself with a sob. He suddenly felt like his entire world might burst any minute. He had never thought knowing the truth about who his father was would be so devastating to him, or perhaps he had thought so all along, and that's why he never looked into it? Maybe he was even a little bit afraid? Everything felt like a big blur to him tonight. Woolsey turned to look at him with an odd expression.

"Oh dear, what's the matter?" he wondered. Magnus swallowed hard, before he answered.

"Can I stay here for the night? I know you have guests coming, I'll make sure to compose myself by then. I was just wondering if…" Magnus looked towards the staircase.

"You can borrow your old room for as long as you wish," Woolsey smiled softly. Magnus gave him a nod of thankfulness. He gave a few last instructions for his maids, and followed Magnus to the bedroom he had once lived in. It was now one of Woolsey's several guest rooms. Woolsey poured them both a glass of whiskey, before he sat down in one of the old fashioned chairs he'd arranged in the room. "You had a fight?" he figured. Magnus looked into his glass and took a small sip. He didn't even feel like drinking tonight, which surprised him.

"Alec found some disturbing facts about my father. Probably thought it would be a nice Christmas present," Magnus sniggered. What had Alec been thinking?

"Oh," Woolsey put down his glass and leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "What did he find?"

Magnus stared at Woolsey for a moment. His friend didn't even look curious, and Magnus knew why – Woolsey researched everyone before making them his charity case. He'd probably known about Magnus' father for more than ten years now. What Magnus was really wondering was, why would Woolsey have helped the son of such a bad person?

"You know exactly what he found, don't you?"

"Magnus," Woolsey sighed before he continued, "I know what kind of person he was ten years ago. That's part of why I helped you. I thought if maybe I didn't help you, then you would turn to your father, and I didn't want that to happen to you." Magnus nodded. He understand Woolsey's concern, and his friend had kept it secret from him. Alec had probably intended to keep it secret, but had failed miserably.

"He left his laptop open with all the facts in front of me. He'd probably rushed to the bathroom to wash away the miserable knowledge about my blood relative," Magnus sat down on the edge of the bed and buried his face in his palms. Woolsey didn't reply, but Magnus heard him get up from his seat and felt him sit down next to him. He looked at his friend sideways, before deciding to bottom the glass of whiskey after all; just one glass wouldn't hurt. "How can I ever live with this information?"

"You leave it like that – a piece of information, nothing more," Woolsey said. It wasn't going to be that easy. He'd spent his entire life trying to ignore the curiosity about his father, because of his mother's tales about him. Now he knew, and he understood why his mother was so afraid of him, and why she didn't want Magnus to know him. He was going to spend Christmas worrying about the fact that he'd disrespected his mother so profoundly by reading the entire page about his father on Alec's laptop. But it had all been right in front of him, how could he not continue reading once he'd found out what his father did for a living? He should have stopped reading any further than "A.S. Modeus, business man and millionaire".

"I don't know if I can," Magnus admitted. How was he going to disregard the fact that his biological father was most likely a psychopath, or at the very least a sociopath? It seemed unlikely that it would ever stop haunting him.

"Magnus, you're nothing like your father. And you won't ever be. You're too much like your mother for that."

"What was she doing with him anyway?" Magnus felt so frustrated about this new information. So many things didn't add up, and then there were things that did – like how he'd acted out after his mother's death. Perhaps he too was a bit of a manipulative maniac. He'd done things he wasn't proud of before. Maybe he'd even manipulated Woolsey into helping him!

"A man like that is bound to be a master at manipulation. He's probably a psychopath too," Woolsey wasn't exactly helping. He was only adding to Magnus' worries.

"Isn't that genetic?"

"Magnus!" Woolsey warned him, and Magnus bit his lip to stop himself from making a fool out of himself any further than he already had. His friend got to his feet, once Magnus had calmed himself down again. "You can stay up here if you like, or you can come and join the party."

Magnus reached out and took Woolsey's hand, which seemed to surprise Woolsey. They had never been the touchy feely kind of friends, but they had had an intimate, yet very casual, relationship once a long time ago.

"Thank you," Magnus said. It seemed to soften Woolsey a bit, and Magnus didn't know what got into him, but he rose to his feet and planted a kiss on Woolsey's lips. His friend didn't exactly push him away, but he softly held him back after a short moment. "Shit. I'm sorry," Magnus sighed.

"It's fine, Magnus. You're upset. Should I send Camille up here?"

"No, I'll be down in a minute," Magnus said absentmindedly, thinking about his stupid and somewhat rash actions. He was probably trying to get back at Alec, but at the same time he thought he would never tell Alec he'd kissed Woolsey. He hadn't even told Alec how they'd once had a casual relationship, but he sensed Alec sort of knew anyway. It would be the worst kind of punishment to tell him, not because he thought he was really cheating on his boyfriend, but because it was Woolsey.

…

The entire evening was awful. Raphael was drunk and awful. Camille was a pain in the ass and awful. Ragnor was nowhere to find, probably because of Raphael being there. Of course, none of them knew why Magnus wasn't spending the holiday with his boyfriend, but neither of them even cared to ask anyway. Magnus' phone kept buzzing, and he kept ignoring the calls. Only when he found a small letter in his pocket, and read that it was a sort of love declaration from Alec, did he leave to be on his own, away from the party. The poem was sloppy, but adorable, and Magnus somehow knew that Alec hadn't spent much time writing it. He'd probably spent more time researching A.S. Modeus. It seemed ridiculous to even feel sentimental about the small letter, but he looked at his phone and noticed a few voicemails. He dialled to listen to what Alec might have to say for himself.

" _Magnus. Darling. I'm so sorry. It was stupid and thoughtless of me, and I wish I could take it all back. Please come home?_ " *beep*

As Magnus continued to listen to the voicemails, he could hear that Alec was getting more and more drunk by every call.

" _Magnus, please. I'll do anything to make it up to you. You have no idea how much I love you. Please forgive me._ " *beep*

" _Okay, well, I guess you know how much I love you. I tell you all the time. But why can't that be an apology enough?_ " *beep*

The last one was Magnus' favorite, and by far the longest message.

" _Magnus, in case you didn't know, this is Alec, I left a bunch of messages and I don't think I said my name. That was sort of stupid. Not as stupid as what I did, obviously. That was beyond stupid. I don't… I don't know what to do_ *sob* _I already miss you. Maybe because it's Christmas Eve and I'm alone. No, that's not it, I miss you all the time. I miss you whenever you leave the apartment. The loft gets so lonely without you. Okay, well, I don't think I should leave any more messages, because I'm getting a little drunk. Just… come back here?_ " *beep*

Tears had just begun to escape from Magnus' eyes, when his door flew open and Raphael fell into the room.

"Magnus!" he greeted with a bottle of tequila in his hand. He closed the door and walked over to the bed where Magnus sat. "I thought you left, but here you are."

"You seem very drunk. Do you need me to find you a guest room?" Magnus sighed, and wiped away his tears. He seemed more drunk than usual, which Magnus concluded must be because of the painkillers he was still taking.

"I already found one," he said, and fell face first onto the bed. Magnus quickly saved the tequila from being spilled all over the bed.

"This is my room," Magnus replied. No answer. "Raphael? And you're asleep. Fantastic."

…

Magnus left the room after checking to see if Raphael still had a pulse. He was still alive and only passed out, but he wasn't sure he could handle Raphael's snoring for the night. Downstairs people were gradually leaving the party, and there weren't a lot of guests left when Magnus came down to the huge living room. Woolsey had a huge Christmas tree in one of the corners, and Magnus quickly spotted Camille standing in front of it, looking incredibly bored.

"Not having a good time?" he asked. She looked up at him with a small frown.

"Woolsey told me what happened. Sorry," she said, and sipped at what looked like eggnog.

"I can't believe I'm related to that," Magnus sighed.

"To Alec?" Camille asked with horror.

"No, my father. What story did he tell you?" Magnus frowned.

"Oh right, yeah your father. I thought we were mad at Alec?" She didn't look mad, she looked even more bored now than a minute ago, if possible.

"I guess," Magnus continued to sigh every time he replied, and now it made her look back up at him. She had to force a compassionate smile to the surface, and it didn't suit her well. She took his hand.

"Good thing you have good friends," Camille said.

"Thanks, that means a lot, Camille."

"Oh, I didn't mean me. I meant the snob over there with an accent, and the… where's he? The little one, the stripper?" she seemed to be searching the room. Magnus couldn't help but laugh at her bluntness.

"Raphael passed out in my room. I have to find a new guest room," Magnus said. "And that snob over there," he looked at Woolsey having what appeared to be a deep conversation with a young actor, "saved your sorry ass ten years ago, when you fell in love with his brother."

"All right. All right. Settle down, I brought him a Christmas present," she rolled her eyes.

"What did you get him?" Magnus wondered. He was desperate for someone to take his mind off A.S. Modeus.

"I signed him up for three different charities," she shrugged.

"What?!"

"He didn't like it. Apparently he prefers to choose his own charities," she replied casually. Magnus couldn't hold back a small laugh.

…

Woolsey didn't have any other available guest rooms, because a few people were staying over. So Magnus had to go back and share the bedroom with Raphael, because he didn't want to go home just yet. A part of him wanted Alec to get worried, and get the time to realize that he had been wrong to research Magnus' family. A part of him wanted to forgive Alec, and sleep in the bed next to him tonight, so he could wake up on Christmas morning next to the only person who'd really made him feel loved since his mother. Another part of him felt betrayed and violated, and truly unhappy that it was all because of that same person. He also knew that it only felt like this _because_ it was Alec.

Magnus ended up falling asleep in an arm chair for a couple of hours, waking up once in a while as Raphael snored in his drunkenness. He woke up early, still tired, but not able to sleep with the little brat in the room, so Magnus walked downstairs to find Woolsey in the kitchen with his morning coffee.

"Merry Christmas Magnus," he said without looking up from his newspaper. Magnus sat down next to him and reached for a cup of coffee. It was so quiet at Woolsey's on Christmas morning. It was a nice kind of quiet, a sort of calm. Woolsey handed Magnus the fashion magazine on the table, and it reminded Magnus of the old days. It had been a good time, but he didn't really miss it now, and he knew exactly why he didn't miss it anymore – because of Alec.

"You should forgive him," Woolsey said suddenly.

"Yeah?" Magnus looked at the magazine; it was an issue with one of his Christmas shoots.

"You are better with him," his friend explained. Magnus knew he was right. He also knew very well that he would forgive Alec eventually, but he wanted the boy to sweat about it just a little while before giving in. Magnus wanted to make sure Alec would never do anything like it again.

"I know," he admitted.

"Go be with your boyfriend. It's Christmas," Woolsey smiled softly, putting down the newspaper.

"What about…?"

"I'll be fine," Woolsey interrupted him. "I need to babysit the little shit that occupies your room. Let's face it, he's a bigger mess than you."

Magnus couldn't help but smile at the thought of Woolsey helping out Raphael. Raphael had been to Magnus what Magnus had been to Woolsey, except Magnus apparently hadn't done as good a job at helping the kid as Woolsey usually did. Raphael had his ups and downs, it was part of his drama queen exterior. And it was part of what Magnus adored about him, even if he didn't admit it.

He agreed to go home, when Woolsey reminded him that it was his home after all. He could always send Alec to stay in one of Woolsey's guest rooms, if they didn't make up before New Year's. Magnus sure wasn't going to kick his boyfriend out during the holidays, but it didn't mean he was going to forgive him yet. It wouldn't be that easy.

* * *

 **This chapter was a bit short, but I think it was important to get Magnus' POV, and I'm glad that you guys supported the idea. I'm going to work on a final Christmas chapter right away (I can't get enough of Christmas, and it's barely even December!)**


	23. Chapter 23

**I'm sorry about their fight, and I'm really glad that those of you who reviewed the chapters seemed to understand why I wanted to write it. So now I've written a really cheesy chapter for you guys, as a way to make it all up to you :D Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Snow Angels**

As soon as Magnus had fallen asleep, Alec begun planning a perfect Christmas Day for Magnus to wake up to. He put on his jacket and went out to find several things that he should have gotten days, maybe weeks ago. But he and Magnus had agreed not to spent too much time on making Christmas too christmasy. He found a convience store that had cranberry sauce, potatoes and chicken (chicken would have to do). On the way back, he met a guy who were still selling Christmas trees and paid overprice to get the damn tree last minute, which he could barely carry on his own along with the groceries. He finally made it home and did everything he could to keep quiet and not wake up Magnus, who was now very fast asleep. Chairman Meow followed Alec around the kitchen and living room with great curiosity, while Alec prepared everything. It was difficult to get the tree level, but he managed. He didn't have much to cover it with, so he had to borrow some LED lights Magnus' usually had in a glass jar. Then he proceeded to work on the food. He'd never prepared a Christmas dinner before, and he didn't exactly have the right food for a Christmas dinner, but he had to do the best with what he had. He ended up making mashed potatoes with chicken breast and cranberry sauce. Finally, he found a present he'd gotten for Chairman Meow a few weeks ago – a Christmas bowtie. The cat didn't really like it at first, but when he realized he couldn't get it off, he let it be. It would have to be present enough for Magnus, and Alec knew he enjoyed pet accessories. Alec had only just planted the food on the table, when Magnus came down to the kitchen island in his bathrobe. He ignored Alec and picked up the cat.

"I see you got a bowtie," he said, while petting the cat.

"I bought it a few week…"

"I was talking to the cat," Magnus interrupted.

"Oh," Alec replied. He shouldn't give up that easily. "I made dinner. It's chicken. They didn't have any turkey left," he shrugged. Magnus sat down at the table without a word, and began to eat in silence. "Magnus, I know you're mad at me…" Alec began, after Magnus had finished his chicken.

"I'm not mad. I was hurt," Magnus said in a low voice.

"That's worse," Alec admitted. "I did something terrible, and I hope we can move past it?"

Magnus finished his wine, and seemed to contemplate his answer.

"I was spending a bit of time with Raphael and Camille last night, and I realized something," Magnus said. "I don't want to fight with you, because you don't just make my life happier, you make me more mature. My friends are so miserable, and I think it has something to do with them not wanting to grow up. I was just like them once, and as I watched my friends last night, I couldn't help but notice. I've never thought that way about them before."

"What does that mean?" Alec wondered. He couldn't help but suddenly hope, Magnus would get over it and they could have a nice Christmas together, like he'd wished for all along.

"It means, I want to move past it. It means, I need to work on some issues that was only worsened by getting that information about my father." Magnus shrugged, and swallowed hard. Alec put his hand on Magnus'.

"Let me help you work on it?"

"You already are. I've always had some sort of identity crisis, despite my shocking resemblance to my mother. The not knowing, made me act out for some reason, and I never felt like I knew who I was. Not until I met you. I've never been more sure of who I am before. You have helped me become the person I needed – wanted – to be, and that should be enough," Magnus explained.

"And… is it? Enough?" Alec was afraid to learn the answer. Until this day, he was still afraid that Magnus would turn his back on him and never want anything else to do with him. He knew it was ridiculous. He knew Magnus was the closest he would get to what sappy romance writers called a "soul mate".

"It's the only thing I've ever been sure of," Magnus said with a shrug. Alec finally allowed himself to smile with relief. He leaned over the table and kissed Magnus softly.

"I thought you were going to be mad at me for the rest of the year," Alec smiled.

"That's a bad 'near New Year's' joke," Magnus said, but he smiled when he said it and that was Christmas miracle enough for Alec.

"It made you smile though."

"I can think of a few other things that will make me smile," Magnus said casually.

"Chairman Meow's bowtie?" They both looked down at the cat, who was now placed in between their chairs.

"Aww, it's like he knows mummy and daddy made up," Magnus joked.

"Mummy? Who's mummy and who's daddy?" Alec frowned.

"You're mummy. Obviously," Magnus rolled his eyes, as if it was obvious.

"Shouldn't we be daddy and daddy?"

"If we ever have a kid, would you agree to be mummy?" Magnus raised an eyebrow.

"No?"

"Then we'll be papa and daddy?"

"Are we really having this conversation right now?" Alec asked. They always did this; they always went from insane discussion to discussion about silly romantic things. He knew Magnus was only joking, but Alec rarely thought it was all that funny. Probably because deep down he really wanted a bigger family someday.

"I think straight and lesbian couples have this conversation way earlier in their relationship?" Magnus mused.

"You're ridiculous," Alec sniggered.

"What says 'I forgive you' more than 'I want to be a dad with you'?" he joked casually.

Alec thought his heart might combust, he got to his feet and pulled Magnus off his stool and into his arms. He'd needed him in his arms for the last twenty-four hours, when it hadn't been possible.

"No more joking about future plans for today? I want 'right now' plans," he whispered into his boyfriend's ear. He began to kiss Magnus' neck.

"I like the sound of that. So, Christmas movies marathon?" he wondered. Alec bit down on his ear softly, and Magnus breathed more heavily.

"Maybe later," Alec leaned back to look at his boyfriend's face. "You're really beautiful."

"Now you're trying too hard," Magnus smirked.

"Shut up. I mean it." Magnus' lips crashed against Alec's, and he dragged Magnus closer to him, until he was pinned against the kitchen island. Magnus lifted Alec up onto the kitchen table with some difficulty, and Alec had to do some of the work himself, since he was bigger than his boyfriend. He pushed off the bathrobe, so Magnus was only wearing a tanktop and underwear. Magnus quickly began to undress Alec as well. The kissing turned into heavy makeout on the kitchen table. Alec brushed away the plates and cutlery to make room for them. Magnus undid Alec's pants almost desperately, freeing Alec's growing erection. The height of the table meant Magnus didn't have to lean down too far to blow Alec. The urgency of Magnus' moves turned Alec on quickly, and he soon had to stop Magnus, before he could reach an orgasm. Despite Magnus' desperation and urgency, Alec wanted to take his time. It was Christmas, and they'd just had their biggest fight so far, he needed to feel Magnus.

"Can I please have permission to fuck you on the kitchen table?" Magnus asked politely. He knew Alec preferred to dominate, and he knew that when he didn't, he preferred a bed underneath him.

"I thought you'd never ask," Alec grinned, and pulled him in for a hard kiss, because he also wanted to do anything Magnus wanted, since he'd been in the wrong in their fight. He'd crossed the line, and he wanted nothing more than for Magnus to fuck him on the table right now, because he'd missed him so much last night. Magnus ran to find the lube and Alec jumped off the table, and removed his pants entirely. The marbled kitchen table was cold against his skin, but it was a good feeling on top of the heat that radiated off his body. Alec turned his back to Magnus when he came back, and Magnus dropped to his knees and began to prepare Alec with his tongue. Alec gasped with surprise, because he hadn't expected Magnus to do so, due to his urgency a minute ago, but he also wasn't complaining. He felt himself getting more and more ready by the second. He was only throbbing for more. Still, when Magnus pressed inside him, he had to hold the table for support. It had been a while since he let Magnus fuck him last, and it took him a minute to adjust. Magnus then thrust himself into Alec, and Alec had to readjust his grip on the table, trying to hold back the groan escaping his throat. Magnus reached around and held Alec by the throat, as a way of turning his head slightly to the side, so he could whisper something in Alec's ear.

"Don't hold back your moans on my account. You know I love the little sounds you make," he whispered, and just hearing his voice made him moan a bit louder. Magnus seemed to be satisfied with the response, and began to push his hips towards Alec at a steady pace. Alec kept feeling his legs buckle under him, and Magnus kept pulling him up straighter every time he pushed deeper. Magnus reached around and began to slowly pump Alec, which only made it more difficult to stand up straight.

"Magnus," Alec breathed, "I don't think I can…"

"What, babe?" Magnus slowed down, still holding on to Alec.

"My knees…" Alec seemed to be at a loss for words. Magnus had never fucked him this hard before, and he wasn't used to standing up. 'Standing' might have been an incorrect term for it – he was leaning halfway onto the kitchen island, but it had gone beyond pleasurable and he spent more time concentrating on not collapsing than he did on the actual act.

"Are you saying I make your knees weak?" Magnus teased. Alec gave him a short chuckle.

"You're an idiot," he said, and pushed Magnus away slowly, so he could turn around. Magnus studied Alec with his eyes, while biting his lower lip.

"Couch?"

Alec looked at the island behind him, and had an idea. He jumped up onto the cold marbled surface, and then gestured for Magnus to follow on top of him. It wasn't much of an improvement, but it was different and it seemed to excite Magnus a great deal. He came quickly after that, and moved down to blow Alec, once again surprising him with how much he could take down his throat, as Magnus lips closed around the base.

"Fuck, Magnus," Alec breathed, and arched his back up right before he came, and Magnus swallowed as usual.

"You're totally cleaning the kitchen table," he smirked, wiping his mouth. Alec laughed, but stopped when Magnus got off the table.

"Where are you going?"

"I forgot your present," Magnus said.

"Present?"

"Please seat yourself on the couch, and don't look!" he warned. Alec did as he was told. For a minute, Chairman Meow came out of his hiding place, testing the waters to see if the coast was clear, but then he noticed something behind Alec and ran back into his castle. Alec frowned and turned around to see – "I told you not to look!"

Alec couldn't help himself, he broke out laughing so hard he thought he might get a cramp. Magnus was wearing what appeared to be a Santa Claus costume, but… sexy? Alec wasn't sure that was the word for it, but it was pretty clear from the red thong with white fur, matching robe and Santa hat that it was definitely supposed to be sexy. How would Magnus even get that costume for men? At least Alec assumed it was for men, and he suddenly felt ashamed of being part of the gay community. Surely, no straight girl would be turned on by something this ridiculous?

"Well that's not the reaction I was hoping for," Magnus frowned.

"What reaction were you hoping for?" Alec wondered. Magnus walked around to stand in front of Alec. Despite the ridiculous costume, Alec was actually turned on again. Magnus looked down at Alec's crotch.

"Something like that," he smirked.

"I'm sorry I didn't get you anything," Alec was trying to hold back his amusement, but he failed miserably.

"That's alright. You'll give me something in a few minutes," Magnus winked, and sat down on Alec's lap.

"Isn't it a bit ironic for Santa to sit on someone's lap?"

"Well, I would have brought it out before, if I hadn't been too distracted," Magnus faked a sulking face. Alec ran his hand up Magnus' abs, slightly touching the soft fabric of the robe along the way.

"Does this mean you still love me?" he looked up into Magnus' eyes, and he seemed taken aback for a moment.

"I still love you, Alexander Lightwood," he smiled softly. "Now tell Santa what you want for Christmas?"

Alec laughed out loud again. He didn't remember a day when he'd laughed so much in such a short time, and it was all because of Magnus and his silly yet lovable nature.

"All I want is you," Alec whispered. Magnus leaned back, looking a bit disappointed.

"That's really cheesy, isn't it?"

"Since when do you dislike cheesy?" Alec grinned.

"You're right," Magnus grinned back, and leaned down to kiss Alec passionately on the lips, while moving his hips slightly so he was rolling over Alec's erection. Alec dug his nails into Magnus soft skin over his stomach, moved his hands to his boyfriend's hips, to help him continue his movement, while making out.

"I admit, this is pretty hot," Alec chuckled against Magnus' lips.

"Obviously. I can wear anything and make it look hot," Magnus smirked.

"How about an elf costume for next year?" Alec suggested and began to kiss Magnus' bare chest.

"You like elves better?"

"I just don't think you're really Santa material," Alec said and licked Magnus' nipple. Magnus shuddered.

"What? I'm not generous enough?"

"You're not… fat enough," Alec looked up at Magnus, who began to smile again.

"Oh. I'll take that," he shrugged and pushed Alec down to lie on the couch.

"Will you keep the robe on?" Alec wondered, and it seemed to amuse Magnus. "And the hat?"

Magnus leaned back and lay down with his head on the opposite end of the couch.

"Yes, but please take the thong off me. I think it's a bit too small?" he said. Alec got up and quickly removed the awful thong. He didn't really like it anyway, and it did look rather painful. Alec ran his hands up Magnus' torso, he wanted to feel every inch of him while making love to him – even wearing a "sexy" Santa costume. For the second round there were no hard surfaces, only the softness of the couch, the softness of the costume fabric, the softness of Magnus' skin under Alec's touch, the softness of his kisses on Magnus' lips and nose, and the soft bliss at the end of the climax.

…

"Imagine if we ever have a kid, we'll have to reinvent this song for Christmas," Magnus mused, while stuffing himself with candy. Alec looked up at the television. He was still naked on top of Magnus, because Magnus didn't want him to put on clothes yet. He'd lit the entire loft with candles, so it wasn't exactly cold anyway, but they'd gotten a blanket to cover themselves up with, while watching VH1's Christmas list. They were now playing the song about mommy kissing santa underneath the mistletoe. "I mean, it would just be so much easier if you would just be 'mummy'?"

Alec held back his laugh, but he imagined Magnus sensed it anyway, since they were on top of each other with nothing between them.

"Enough with the mummy talk," he chuckled.

"All right," Magnus sighed. "This is the best Christmas I've had in twelve years. Maybe even more," he added. Alec turned his head to look up at Magnus with a soft smile.

"Me too," he replied. Magnus frowned with disbelief.

"Believe it or not, Christmas with my family is always full of drama."

"So I wasn't drama enough for you?"

"You were just enough drama. But you know, it was kind of my own fault," Alec said.

"What kind of drama do you usually have?" Magnus asked. Alec lay his head down comfortably on Magnus' chest again, before he began story time.

"Well, let's see. One year, Izzy insisted on making Christmas dinner," he began and Magnus was already laughing.

"I didn't tell you this, but when I went to bake Christmas cookies with her, she burnt the first two rounds. I had to step in and supervise the third round," Magnus explained. It didn't exactly surprise Alec much.

"Well, then you won't be surprised to learn that she even burnt the Christmas pudding. The first year after my dad left, my mom kept running errands, because she couldn't stand to be home without my dad. The next year, Max went to have Christmas with our dad, and it was just weird being home just the three of us. I guess it would have been the same this year, if it hadn't been for you." Alec was now thinking of Izzy. He hoped his sister and mother were doing alright this Christmas, hopefully eating takeout. Magnus brushed a hand through Alec's hair, and Alec was absentmindedly tracing patterns on Magnus' chest with his fingertips.

"One year, my stepdad made me sit in the closet throughout Christmas dinner, because I'd come home late," Magnus said in a low voice. Alec looked back up at him.

"Shit, I'm sorry, Magnus." Now he felt terrible for whining about his stupid family drama. It wasn't real drama, it was usually just Izzy and Maryse yelling at each other for some stupid reason.

"Don't be. I wasn't trying to top your stories. It's not a competition. I'm just saying," he said. Alec turned his head and kissed Magnus' neck. Alec felt blessed that Magnus had forgiven him so quickly. He was glad they had that kind of relationship even after only six months. Maybe it was because they were still somewhat new? Maybe they would turn into his family, once they got older. He shuddered at the thought, and Magnus pulled the blanket up closer around Alec's shoulders. "Do you want clothes?"

"No, that's not it. I was just worrying that we might turn into my family someday," Alec sniggered.

"We might. I guess, as long as we don't turn into my family we'll be okay," Magnus joked, and Alec frowned. "Too soon?"

"We won't. I promise," Alec replied. _All I Want For Christmas_ started playing on the television.

"Full circle," Magnus smiled, just as his phone rang. He sighed with annoyance, but reached for it. "It's Raphael?" he mused.

"Put it on speaker," Alec grinned. "I want to hear if he's singing a Christmas carol."

"Christmas carol? You heard me say Raphael, right?" But he accepted the call on speaker. "Raphael?"

" _IT'S SNOWING! IT'S SNOWING! ON CHRISTMAS DAY!_ " the guy on the other end of the line yelled.

"Calm yourself, Santiago. You're going to break something," Magnus chuckled.

" _I'm gonna regret asking, but I'll do it anyway – please come and make snow angels with me in central park?_ " His accent was more noticeable somehow, when he was talking in a rushed and excited voice.

"On a scale of one to ten how high are you right now?" Magnus looked at Alec with narrowed eyes.

" _A solid four. But it's really snowing!_ "

Alec got to his feet and went to look out the window. It looked like it had been snowing for an hour or so. The street was beginning to look white. It was also beginning to get dark outside. They'd been on the couch all day. He gave Magnus an assuring nod to tell him it was actually snowing. Then he went to the closet to find some clothes.

"Alright, we'll be there in forty-five minutes," Magnus said. Raphael hung up without as much as a 'thank you' or a 'yes!'. Magnus seemed to be dragging his feet out of the couch and up to the bedroom. "He's never excited about much, but I thinks it's about his upbringing in Mexico. He'd never seen snow before he came to New York," he explained.

"I think it's cute. And now I really want to make snow angels with you," Alec said, and gave Magnus a small kiss on the nose.

"And Raphael. You're making snow angels with me and Raphael," Magnus warned.

"It'll be fun," he shrugged. Magnus grunted with disappointment.

…

There was a lot of people out in the park. Children playing in the snow. It was the good kind of snow, the kind of snow you could make snowmen out of. Eventually they found Raphael helping a kid pick sticks for arms for his snowman. It was an odd picture to see him in, but it suited him and somehow it made him seem more human than Alec had thought of him before.

"Merry Christmas, Raphael," Alec smiled. Raphael's smile dropped when he looked at the two of them.

"Ew, you've been fucking all day," he exclaimed. The kid he'd helped looked just as disgusted if possible.

"You're a pornstar?" Now the kid was running away from them, calling for his mother. Probably a wise choice, Alec thought.

"Whatever. Let's find a good spot to do snow angels," Raphael said and looked around. "Gosh, people are everywhere. They've probably ruined all the spots."

"Why snow angels?"

"I'm a man of faith, aren't you Lightwood?" he said it like a warning.

"I guess," Alec shrugged. He wasn't very religious. And he was pretty sure snow angels were only a childhood game, and probably didn't have much to do with actual angels, and more to do with rolling around in the snow.

After walking around the park between all the people of New York, they eventually found a spot where no one had stepped on a big enough space for the three of them to lie down on a line. Magnus on one end, Raphael in the middle and Alec fell down beside Raphael, and they all started to sweep their arms and legs back and forth. Raphael quickly jumped to his feet without ruining the image, Alec was careful in his movements, and Magnus had some difficulty getting up, so Alec gave him a hand to help him up.

The three of them stared at their perfectly made snow angels. Everything seemed so peaceful then.

"So you guys made up, huh?" Raphael said, not looking at the two of them, each with an arm wrapped around the back of the other.

"Yes," Magnus replied, once he'd gotten over the shock of Raphael caring enough to ask.

"All right then. I'll be going home. Later, perdedores," he said and turned away.

"Did he just call us losers?" Alec wondered.

"What? That's it? Don't you want to grab something to eat?" Magnus asked. Raphael looked back at him.

"And be the third wheel to… that?" he gestured towards Magnus and Alec loosely with his hand.

"Right. It was good to see you too, Santiago," Alec grinned. The guy was something else, but underneath it all, he was a lovable person and Alec was starting to understand why Magnus kept him around. "Snow angels?" Alec mused, once the young boy was gone.

"It's kind of beautiful," Magnus shrugged. "And hey, you got to see New York on Christmas Day after all. I'm not sure I'm letting you out of bed next year. Besides, it's not always snowing on Christmas," he added.

"I love snowy New York," Alec declared.

"You want to go home and watch Christmas movies, don't you?" Magnus figured.

"Yes," Alec admitted. "Maybe they're still showing Disney's Christmas special?"

"You're so gay," Magnus chuckled, wrapped his arm around Alec sideways, and began to walk home.

* * *

 ** _I'll start working on a New Year's Eve chapter soon. I've decided to include some new characters to the story ;)_**


	24. Chapter 24

**New Year's Eve**

"You and Magnus had a fight?! You and Magnus?" Izzy couldn't quite wrap her mind around it. She'd told Alec all about her Christmas, and that Robert had even been home this year. It had been kind of odd and she was sort of suspecting they were getting back together. All while Simon had been home with his mother and sister and had a regular night in with takeout. Still, he had bought a present for Izzy, which was a beautiful bracelet with ruby charms.

"Yes, Izzy. I did something incredibly stupid, and he went to Woolsey's the night before Christmas."

"Oh gosh, are you guys okay?"

"Yeah, he came home on Christmas day," Alec shrugged. He had to suppress the thoughts of his Christmas with Magnus so he wouldn't reveal it to Izzy. Unfortunately, she was an expert at reading him by now.

"You guys totally had hot make up sex, right?"

"Izzy, do you have to do that?" he sighed.

"Sorry," she rolled her eyes. "I'm just saying, whatever you did, I'm sure it's not worth fighting over. Not for you guys. You never fight. I know you're still in those early stages of your relationship, where you keep gazing at each other from across the room," she said with a dreamy gaze of her own. Alec frowned at her. "What?"

"Don't tell me, you're already writing fanfictions about us?" he teased her.

"Oh my God, when your book gets published people will totally write fanfictions about you. Gay fanfictions are always way smuttier," she teased back.

"I'm beginning to dread this conversation."

"Algnus…" she mused.

"What?"

"No wait – Malec. That would be your ship name," she decided. Alec buried his face in his palm. "Anyway, you'll have more fights. And now you know how to get over it. Although, I'm still learning some of Simon's flaws," Izzy explained. Now Alec had to look up at his sister. That wasn't just an ordinary change of subject – she was upset about something.

"What did he do?" he asked, a bit too brotherly of what he would have expected from himself. Simon wasn't exactly someone you needed to save Izzy from, if anything it would probably be Simon who needed saving. Izzy sighed dramatically.

"It's probably just because he works so much, but he keeps forgetting things lately. He keeps forgetting appointments and dates. He's just always hanging out with his new friends. It was so much easier, when he was a loser and his only friend was Clary. Here he's amongst fellow nerds, and they have so much to talk about," she explained. Alec didn't know what to say. He wasn't really good at this kind of talk with his sister, because it always made him feel uncomfortable.

"I'm sure it doesn't mean anything."

"It does to me. I don't have as many friends here," Izzy said. Alec had never thought he would have this conversation with her. She'd never seemed to be in need of friendships. She'd always had enough in him and Jace, and then Clary and Simon. She'd never formed meaningful friendships, because she'd never seemed to need that. Alec knew now that it might be a façade. "But I suppose… I'm going to get to know Simon's friends a bit more. Maybe they're not bad," she shrugged.

"Right."

"We're having New Year's with them. Please say you'll come? I can't face the nerds alone," she begged. Alec chuckled.

"I'll have to make sure Magnus didn't make any plans, but sure," he smiled.

…

"Simon has friends? Other than Clary?" Magnus wondered.

"I was shocked too," Alec joked. "Maybe it will be a party full of Simons."

"Maybe it'll be fun," Magnus shrugged. He was looking through his closet for something to wear for New Year's. "Where is it going to be?"

"In one of his friend's apartment. Izzy and Simon don't have room for more than four people," he shrugged.

"We need to go shopping for something to wear," Magnus decided.

"What? Now? I need to work," Alec said.

"Fine, I'll just pick something for you."

"Erh, no?" Alec tried. He knew he'd already lost that discussion, but what Magnus said next kind of surprised him.

"How about I pick three outfits and bring them home for you, and you can choose the one you like the best, and I'll return the other two?"

"A compromise?"

"Don't sound so shocked, I can compromise," he shrugged.

"Yeah, in all other areas than fashion?" Alec was waiting for the catch. "Wait, okay, so you pick three outfits, but two of them better not be ridiculous so I'll have to choose the one you really want me to wear," he warned his boyfriend. Magnus faked a hurt expression, he even placed his hand dramatically over his heart.

"I would never… okay, fine," he sighed. "I'll pick three reasonable choices for you. And then you better finish that book, it's starting to annoy me." Alec knew Magnus was only joking, because he wanted Alec to go with him, but the truth was they both knew Alec would have found another excuse not to go with him anyway.

"Then you'll be disappointed to hear that Charlotte signed me up for two more," Alec hadn't told Magnus yet, because he was waiting for the right time to surprise him. It seemed to hit home, and Magnus' smile was just right and completely adorable, but only for a second, then he dropped his surprise and shrugged.

"I knew she would," he replied. Magnus pulled Alec in for a kiss. "I'll just be bragging about my big shot boyfriend all New Year's Eve, until the nerds get sick of me."

"Please don't," Alec chuckled.

"I will do it whenever you're not listening, and you'll never know," Magnus said it as if it was final.

…

The three outfits Magnus brought home was actually pretty reasonable. And there were no bright colors, only black, grey and navy. It was a rather difficult choice for Alec. Well, one of the dress shirts did have sparkly buttons, but it was subtle and it was probably just right for New Year's Eve. So he chose the black shirt with sparkly buttons, a perfectly fitted black blazer and black skinny jeans. The clothes sort of made him feel fashionable and confident, which of course was Magnus' purpose all along.

"I have some shoes that would go just right with that shirt," Magnus said, and reached into the closet for a pair of silver glittered shoes.

"Nope," Alec replied quickly.

"But you're all black?"

"There's glitter on my buttons?"

"And that's why it works perfect with these shoes?" Magnus retorted.

"Fine. What are you wearing?" he wondered, as he tried the shoes on along with the outfit. Magnus smirked, turned Alec's back towards Magnus, while he changed into something from one of the many bags he had. Once he'd changed into the new clothes, he turned Alec back around. Magnus was now wearing an all metallic blue suit, and it actually looked shockingly handsome despite the bold color. Alec blinked a few times to adjust to the amount of flashy color.

"It's Tom Ford," Magnus smiled.

"It looks really good," Alec admitted. Magnus seemed satisfied with the answer.

"And you know what," he took his arms around Alec and moved both of them to stand in front of the mirror, "it matches your eyes."

"You're ridiculous," Alec replied flatly.

"What? I'm not allowed to be romantic? You didn't pick the blue suit I brought you, so I needed to make up for it."

"Mine was navy, it's not the same," Alec pointed out.

"No, your eyes are more electric blue. You'll have to be right beside me all night, so it'll bring out the color in your eyes," he teased. Alec was just about to object and ask him about when he was going to brag about him to the nerds, if he was right beside him all the time; but remembered that two could play this game. He took a step closer, so their faces were only inches apart.

"I won't be able to leave your side anyway," he said in a low voice, his eyes flickered down to Magnus' lips because he just couldn't help it, and then back up to his eyes.

"Is that so?"

"I'll be too busy waiting for my chance to rip that suit off you," Alec said. Magnus took a step back, and held on to the collar of the metallic blue jacket.

"It's Tom Ford!" he exclaimed, and turned to walk away from a flabbergasted Alec. Was he really that bad at dirty talk? He was just about to apologize, when Magnus turned back around with a huge grin on his face. "Just kidding," he said and his lips crashed against Alec's.

"You're a horrible person," Alec grinned against Magnus' lips.

"I know, it keeps me awake at night," he breathed and licked Alec's lips.

"How about I take off your suit very carefully and fold it over the chair?"

"That doesn't sound very hot."

"Right."

"How about we both rush out of our new clothes and then you throw me onto the bed?" Magnus suggested.

"That could work," Alec agreed. And they both quickly undressed at the same time. Magnus had only just laid down his pants, when Alec was ready to lift Magnus an inch so he could still reach up, and kiss Magnus hard on his lips, before throwing him down onto the bed. Alec started by the foot of the bed, kissing Magnus' toes, before moving further and further up his body.

"You know, I haven't washed my feet today," Magnus teased.

"Yeah, I thought you were a little dirty," Alec pretended to spit. Magnus laughed, and pushed him softly in the chest with his foot. Magnus immediately replaced his chuckle with moans, when Alec reached his hard-on. Magnus moved his hips, while Alec took in more of Magnus' length and felt him hit the back of his throat. Alec hummed, while blowing his boyfriend and it made Magnus a bit squirmy underneath him as usual. Being with Magnus was beginning to feel comfortable, they knew each other's soft and weak spots, they had routines, they knew every inch of each other, they could joke with each other during sex and it wouldn't hurt the other's feelings.

Alec stopped sucking and licking, when he felt Magnus was getting close. Instead he moved his tongue further down, and began to lick once again, to prepare Magnus. Before long Magnus' legs were resting on Alec's shoulders, and he was begging for more. Alec kissed his way up Magnus' body, until he reached his lips. Magnus was pulling and clawing at Alec to get him closer, which was impossible once Alec pressed inside of him. It was amazing how much confidence Magnus' little noises and small desperate touches gave Alec. It always encouraged him to go deeper, until Magnus stopped moving his hands up and down Alec's back, and just dug his nails into one spot on each side of Alec to keep him in place, while they both came together. Alec kissed Magnus' jawline, while he waited for him to open his eyes again. Magnus looked up at Alec with a soft smile.

"Thank you," he said.

"For what?" Alec blinked.

"For what will probably be my last orgasm this year. For an amazing year, at least half of it," he replied. Now Alec smiled as well. He relaxed, and settled down next to Magnus on the bed.

"You're welcome," he replied. The high of Magnus thanking him for sex made him feel a bit cocky.

…

"I think I should get a haircut before New Year's. I can't remember when I last cut it," Alec ran a hand through his hair. It had never been this long, but Magnus seemed to like it just like that, and now he was staring at Alec with horror.

"Can't you just put it up in a man bun?" Magnus looked at him with puppy eyes.

"Uhm…" Alec wasn't sure he would really look all that good with a man bun. Although he had done it a few times, when he was working or cleaning the apartment, because his hair was getting in the way then. But he'd never actually taken notice of how he looked with it.

"It looks so good on you. I'll do it for you. Oh, you know what you should get? A full grown beard," Magnus suggested.

"What? I can't grow a beard before New Year's Eve," Alec rolled his eyes.

"Make it your New Year's resolution."

"I should make it my New Year's resolution to become a hipster?" Alec frowned.

"You already write novels in coffeeshops, then you could be a wholehearted hipster. Maybe people will even think the holes in your sweaters are because it's vintage?"

"Okay, now you're just insulting me," Alec replied.

Magnus ended up having his way after all though, because there was no available places to get his hair cut this close to New Year's Eve, and Magnus forbid him to have Izzy do it, because it would be disastrous. Instead Magnus got his way and made the man bun for Alec. It was comfortable to have his hair out of the way, and it did look kind of hipster chic, Alec had to admit. He had probably looked like a hobo for the past month or so, but he'd been too busy to care.

"Oh my God," Magnus held on to the sink for support, while they were getting ready in the bathroom.

"Are you okay?" Alec asked with concern.

"I just had a hot flash, I was so overwhelmed by my boyfriend's good looks," he said. Alec sniggered and pushed Magnus away for being so ridiculous.

"You're an idiot," he said.

"But I'm your idiot, right?"

"Yes you are," Alec smirked. He walked out into the living room. Chairman Meow was sitting by the kitchen island and watching him with a curious look. "What, you don't think I look handsome?" he asked the small feline. "Hey Magnus, are we sure he'll be alright for the night? What about the fireworks?"

"He'll be fine. I'll turn on the music, he won't hear a thing."

…

The two of them went out to get Simon and Izzy, so they could all go together.

"I can't wait for you to meet the guys," Simon said on the way in the cab. Alec and Magnus weren't really paying attention to him, because Magnus was playing with Alec's fingers and it was a bit distracting. If only New Year's Eve could be like Christmas Day. Izzy kicked his leg, and got his attention back.

"Yeah, sure," he replied.

Simon's "guys" weren't exactly what Alec had expected. These people weren't all dorky. Well, there was this one girl with a narrow face, silky blonde hair and glasses, who looked slightly nerdy. Her name was Julie and the look she was giving Magnus was making Alec a bit uncomfortable.

"Oh. My. God. Huge fan, Mr Bane," she said, while shaking his hand aggresively.

"Thanks," Magnus said, a bit of uncertainty in his voice.

"This is Beatriz," Simon introduced another beautiful girl with dark skin and a warm smile. "Uh, and this is George," Simon reached out for a passing guy. Simon seemed more eager to introduce this person than the girls, and Alec could understand why, had Simon been into the potential underwear model type of guys. Luckily, Alec was almost certain Simon was completely straight and definitely devoted to Izzy. And what seemed like even greater luck was that Magnus didn't seem to notice this guy's stunning beauty, despite his light brown curls and small dimples. Alec cleared his throat before shaking George's hand. "Where's Marisol?" Simon wondered.

"Last time I saw her, she was explaining the entire plot of Star Wars to Jon," George shrugged.

"Oh right. Jon hasn't seen Star Wars," Simon laughed, as if this information was quite ludicrous. Alec looked at Izzy, who gave him a shrug, but leaned in to whisper that Simon once told her the entire plot to help her fall asleep.

Apparently they were in George's apartment. George, whose last name Alec learned, was Lovelace. It was quite a silly name, and Alec had had to try hard to keep a straight face. George led them to the snacks and alcohol in the kitchen. The entire setting looked like a big frat party, and Alec wondered if there'd been a theme or if that was honestly the way George was. Alec had just gotten a drink handed to him, when a short girl came over to them.

"This is Marisol. Though she be but little she is fierce," Simon introduced. She didn't even look eighteen, but Alec sensed that her looks might be misguided. She did look fierce though, despite her size.

"He's only kidding. Everybody here just wants to eat her up," George joked. She turned her eyes on him with a piercing look.

"That's not funny, Lovelace. Cannibals are real," she said. George froze for a second, and Alec thought that this guy might actually be a bit afraid of her after all. "I'm kidding. Geez, you guys are so tense." She turned towards Izzy, Alec and Magnus. "Nice to meet you. And I know you're wondering, so yes, I am eighteen. I skipped a few grades. I'm a genius," she shrugged.

The evening began quietly. Simon and George went off to investigate some new gadget George had gotten over Christmas. Julie and Beatriz stayed around, asking Magnus all sorts of questions about his work, and some more personal questions, which Alec had to roll his eyes at. Magnus kept trying to brag about Alec, but they very clearly did not care about him at all, so he eventually went to find his sister in a deep conversation with another guy.

"Alec, come join us. This is Jon," Izzy said. Alec greeted the guy, and settled down on the couch with them. "We were just comparing notes on how to deal with our partners when they insist on summarizing the entire plot of Star Wars."

"It's exhausting," Jon sighed.

"Marisol is your partner?" Alec asked. He tried not to seem too surprised or judgy. He looked somewhat older than her, but Alec also noticed that most of Simon's colleagues were very young.

"At work. She's my work partner," he answered a bit quickly.

"Where's Magnus?" Izzy wondered sweetly.

"He's being interrogated by Julie and Beatriz."

"Do you think he needs someone to save him?"

"I think he can handle himself," Alec grinned. As if on cue, Magnus came over to them.

"You just left me," he accused.

"You were fine," Alec shrugged.

"I felt like I was in high school all over again. You know, where all the girls want to be your friend, because you have killer fashion sense?"

"No, I don't," Alec replied flatly.

"Come on, Alec. Don't be so hard on yourself. You look amazing today," Izzy tried.

"Magnus bought it," he eyed her.

"Oh. But your hair is great. Very in right now," she continued.

"Magnus," Alec replied again. Izzy grimaced, and Magnus slid into the small space left on the couch, wearing a gloating expression.

They continued to small talk about Jon's work and Izzy's work, and then suddenly Alec heard a buzzing sound in between the music. When he looked up towards the sound he found a drone watching them with a camera.

"George's new gadget?" he figured. Izzy nodded, but she was smiling.

"Isn't it cool? It's got a camera and everything," Simon exclaimed, moving towards them, so they could see the tiny screen that showed them from above.

"You're not getting one," Izzy said, before Simon could ask.

"But…"

"No," Izzy said firmly.

"You can always borrow mine, bro," George shrugged.

"Thanks, man. You get me," Simon replied. Izzy rolled her eyes, and Alec couldn't help but grin. He was suddenly very glad that at least his boyfriend only spent all his money on his appearance. Simon landed the drone on one of the tables, and almost caused a mess. George didn't seem to care too much, which helped confirm that the frat party scene wasn't a theme or an act, that was just the way George was.

The small one, Marisol, came out of one of the rooms with something in her hand.

"Aww, George, you never mentioned you had a hamster," she said. George looked horrified, and hurried towards her, to take away the small creature from her hand.

"He's not a hamster, he's a mouse. You have to be careful with him."

"I was!" Marisol seemed offended. "What's his name?"

George looked at Simon for a moment, and Alec saw that Simon was trying to hold back a laugh.

"Irrelevant," George replied.

"His name is 'Irrelevant'? That's an odd name for a rat you seem to love."

"He's a mouse, and I didn't always love him."

"His name is Jon," Simon whispered to Magnus, but Alec could hear it. "Long story."

…

The party then continued in various disastrous events. Someone spilled a sticky drink on the shoes Alec had borrowed from Magnus. It was highly unlikely it would come off without ruining the glitter. Izzy's hair nearly caught fire. And Julie got so drunk, she made an embarrassing pass at Magnus, who tried to turn her down easy, but ended up moving out of her way, and causing her to fall flat on her face. George and Simon then had to carry her to the bed, and George complained about having to sleep on the couch.

At midnight though, Alec grabbed Magnus' hand and had his first New Year's Eve midnight kiss. Unlike everything else this evening, the kiss felt right and perfect and it made Alec forget about how he'd regrettably agreed to go with Izzy and Simon to this awful party full of awkward little nerds.

"I love you," he whispered to his boyfriend.

"I love you," Magnus smiled. He then looked around to see that everyone were either busy making out or telling each other a happy new year, before he dragged Alec to the bathroom and locked the door behind them.

"I'm sorry, this party sucks," Alec admitted. Magnus ignored him. He pushed him against the sink and began to kiss him heavily.

"I don't care," Magnus breathed against Alec's skin. He pulled the shirt out of Alec's pants and touched the bare skin underneath it, digging his thumb into Alec's hips, while biting down on Alec's lip.

"Fuck, Magnus," he groaned, and pushed his boyfriend down onto the toilet seat. He quickly undid Magnus' pants and began to blow his boyfriend. Magnus grabbed his hair, and Alec worried for only a second that he would have to redo his hair or everyone would know he'd just given his boyfriend a blowjob in the bathroom, but he forgot to worry when Magnus started panting. It only made Alec suck him harder, and Magnus came in his mouth after a few minutes. Alec spit the cum out into the sink and wiped his mouth with the towel, before he looked at Magnus with a smirk. Magnus was trying to get his breathing under control.

"Get your pants up," Alec whispered.

"What, we're done?"

"For now," Alec grinned. "We can go home if you want?"

"I think it's kind of exciting to do it here," Magnus reached for Alec's hand and dragged him over to lean down to his face.

"I don't want them to hear us," he said in a low voice.

"We'll be quiet," Magnus tried.

"Not likely," Alec smirked. Magnus looked up at him with puppy eyes, while he led his free hand to Alec's crotch. "Izzy will know."

"Izzy doesn't care. Why can't you see that?" Magnus rubbed against Alec's jeans.

"Please let's go home? I don't want to fuck you in a stranger's bathroom. I want to make love to you in our bed."

"So boring," Magnus sighed dramatically, and zipped his pants back up. He went for the door.

"Magnus, what about my hair? You totally ruined it?"

Magnus turned and gave him a mischievous smirk, and left the bathroom. Alec looked at himself in the mirror, and the door opened again. He was just about to tell Magnus to fix it, when he realized it was Izzy. She closed the door, before she saw Alec in there.

"Oh, there you are. Happy New Year," she said and sat down on the toilet.

"Really? Izzy! Boundaries!" Alec exclaimed and turned away from her, while she peed.

"I'm drunk, and you're my brother, so I honestly couldn't care less," she replied. "Hey, what happened to your hair?"

"Uhm…"

"Here, let me help you." She quickly washed her hands, and he kneeled down so she could save his hair. He really needed to get a haircut. "There. It really looks great long," she added.

"Right. I think Magnus and I are gonna go home."

"I'm sorry I dragged you to this party. I know it sucks," she admitted.

"No, it's fine. I spent New Year's Eve with my sister, as I always do."  
"You just wish Jace was here as well?"

"Yeah, well… that's just how it is, when we're all the way out here in New York," Alec shrugged. He pulled Izzy in for a long hug. "Happy New Year, Sis."

…

They had to walk home, because there was no use trying to get a cab at this our on New Year's Eve. Alec didn't mind though, as long as he got to walk the street on one of the busiest nights of the year, holding his boyfriend's hand. He occasionally lifted Magnus' hand and planted a kiss on his fingers, while they walked quietly. They passed a group of drunk people, and then a group of people dressed up in the kind of formal clothes Alec only ever saw at Woolsey's parties.

"We'll go to Woolsey's party next year," Alec promised, when he noticed Magnus turn his head at the formal people.

"I kind of liked being the best dressed at a New Year's Eve party," Magnus shrugged.

"You're always the best dressed, even at Woolsey's parties," Alec reminded him.

"What did I do to deserve someone like you?" Magnus looked at Alec.

"You noticed me," Alec replied, and bit his lip shyly, hoping he didn't make things too serious suddenly. It was the honest truth – Magnus had noticed him, which had been a rare thing for Alec.

"I can't believe that no one else had," Magnus smiled, and looked back at the street ahead of them.

When they got back to the apartment, they couldn't see Chairman Meow anywhere. They both began to search for the small cat, and Alec soon found him hiding under the bed, shaking.

"He won't hear a thing, huh?" Alec accused.

"Oh poor thing. Well, get him out."

"Obviously I'm trying, he won't let me touch him," Alec said and reached further under the bed to get hold of the cat, but it clawed him and Alec pulled his hand back – it was bleeding from a small wound.

"That little…"

"He's scared. Give him a break," Alec hushed his boyfriend. Soon the cat came out with a guilty look, as if he was sorry for hurting Alec. "It's okay, come here." He picked up the cat, and held him like he was a small baby. It didn't take long, before he began to purr.

"There. He's fine," Magnus said, and took the cat from Alec to place him back on the floor. Magnus then pushed Alec's jacket off, and began to unbutton his shirt. Alec followed his example, and soon they were both in their underwear making out on the bed. Magnus had only just put his hand down Alec's underwear, when Alec noticed the cat at the foot of the bed.

"Uhm, Magnus?" Chairman Meow had always run into hiding once the two of them started to get naked and make out.

"That's odd. He's usually shy?"

"He's still scared," Alec said, and removed Magnus' hand. He pulled up the covers, and gestured for the cat to come closer. Magnus lay down on his back with a dramatic sigh. The cat placed himself in the small space between Alec and Magnus. Alec stroked him, and he began to lick his hand. "He's had a tough evening. He'll be fine tomorrow," Alec assured Magnus.

"Well maybe I won't be horny tomorrow?" Magnus offered. Alec raised his eyebrows and looked at his boyfriend. "Okay, fine, I most likely will be."

* * *

 **I'm not entirely happy with how I portrayed the new characters, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway. I just wanted to introduce them so that I might use them again some other time, but I don't know. Let me know what you think :)**


	25. Chapter 25

_**This is the last chapter before Christmas, I hope I'll get a chance to write another chapter before New Year's, but I'm not sure. I hope you're all enjoying the holidays!**_

* * *

 **Draw Something**

Izzy usually worked evenings and nights, so Alec had lots of time with his sister now that she was in New York. He could work any hours of the day, so today he'd decided to work on his next book later and spent the morning with his sister drinking coffee in the park. He had something important to tell her.

"I need to show you something," Alec said and reached into his computer bag.

"Oh god, you're not pregnant, are you?" she teased.

"Funny," he replied flatly and handed her the first edition of his book.

"OMG! That says Alec Lightwood! That is so cool! Is that Clary's drawing?" Izzy looked through it with astonishment. Alec had asked Clary to make her version of a cover, and he'd convinced Charlotte to go with it. "Can I have it?"

"No, I need that one. I'll get you another one, okay?" he said, and she looked at him suspiciously, but then she gave it back to him. He put it back in his bag, where it was safe.

"You know, Magnus has been nagging me about something," Izzy began, once she'd recovered from her brother having an actual book to show for himself. They were now watching a few young people playing ball, from where they sat.

"What did he do now?" Alec wondered.

"He's gotten this idea into his head that you want to propose to him?" she said it like a question.

"I might have given him that idea," Alec shrugged.

"Alec, you've not even been together for a year?" she exclaimed.

"I love him and I don't want anyone other than him. You didn't see him when I first met him," Alec sighed.

"Enlighten me?"

"He was lonely. He didn't think he could really love someone. He spent his days partying and drinking and working. That's it."

"You feel protective of him because you got him out of that routine, I get it," Izzy said.

"It's more than that."

"I know. I just wanted to make sure you thought it through."

"It's all I ever think about," Alec admitted.

"Good. Then we need to do something about the fact that he told me he wanted to surprise you with a proposal first," Izzy said.

"What?!"

"You heard me. We need to do something about it," she said. They were both thinking for a while, sitting in silence. "Maybe we should go look at rings? That's a good way to start?"

"Right. Of course," Alec chuckled nervously.

…

"Izzy, I'm not sure I can afford any of these," Alec said. It felt shitty to look at rings in a jewellery store that specialized in engagement rings, when he didn't exactly get paid much in advance for his book. Although he was looking at a few rings that Magnus would definitely love. Magnus already had a lot of rings, so he needed something a little extra than that, except all of Magnus' rings were expensive designer rings. He was looking at one called 'The Dauntless Ruler' and it would be perfect, but it was white gold and way too expensive.

Izzy then dragged Alec to Tiffany's to look at rings. It didn't do much difference price-wise, and it seemed that suddenly Izzy was browsing for rings for herself. She found one that looked like a snake.

"This looks so gorgeous," she said as she stared at it through the glass. Something popped into Alec's mind, and he took out his smartphone and began browsing. He'd seen a similar ring once, it was the ouroboros. It would be perfect for Magnus, and a bit out of the ordinary for an engagement ring. He then found a vintage version of a snake embracing a blue stone, it wasn't real sapphire, but it looked real in the picture.

"How about this?" Alec held the phone up in front of Izzy, and she studied it.

"It's gorgeous, but not really a typical engagement ring, is it?"

"Since when is anything about Magnus typical?" Alec replied.

"You're right," she smiled at him with a knowing sort of smile. "Luckily, the shop is in New York."

Alec knew that, because he'd narrowed the search. They went to the shop at the other end of the city, and the ring turned out to be even more beautiful in real life.

"It's still a bit expensive," Alec was suddenly nervous. It wasn't the kind of ring you could just return again, if Magnus didn't like it.

"But Magnus is worth it, right?" Izzy helped.

"Yeah, but I'll be completely broke, do you think he wants to marry a poor man?"

"I think if he didn't he would have dumped your ass months ago," Izzy grinned.

"Thanks a lot," Alec sniggered.

"I'm sorry. Look, he doesn't care about money, he cares that you spent time finding just the right ring. Does it feel like you've found the right ring?"

"Do you know what 'ouroboros' represents?" Alec asked. He knew, but he could sense that Izzy didn't. The shop owner then interrupted the two of them.

"It is said that the mathematical infinity symbol derives from the ouroboros. It represents eternal renewal, eternity, immortality. It can also represent the idea of something existing before anything else, and has such force that it cannot be extinguished," the man explained. Izzy looked back at Alec.

"You should get it. If you don't get it, I'll get it for Simon," she said.

"It's not really his style though, is it?" Alec frowned. She hit him on the arm, and he agreed to buy it. "I'll take it," he smiled. He knew it was just perfect, that's why he'd brought Izzy all the way to the other side of the city.

…

The next day, Izzy called. She'd talked to Magnus.

"He's going to propose to you with a game called 'draw something'? I don't know, he saw it on the internet, and he thought it would be romantic. He'll suggest you play the game, and then write 'marry me' on you. You have to propose before he suggests the game," Izzy said in a rushed voice, as if she was running out of time and her life depended on her giving this piece of information.

"Okay. Wow. Thanks, Izzy," Alec replied and hung up. He needed to be quick on his feet. Magnus was going to be home soon. Alec quickly cleaned the entire apartment, because somehow the stress of knowing Magnus' plan made him nervous, and the only thing easing the nerves was to busy himself. He'd already prepared the ring, and it was ready in his night stand, where Magnus never looked. While he was cleaning, he also thought of how he would handle it if Magnus had planned to ask tonight. And once the frontdoor opened, and Magnus came into the apartment with an adorable smile on his face, despite his long day at work, Alec had made a nearly fool proof plan.

"Aww, you cleaned the apartment?" Magnus noticed. He said the same thing every time Alec cleaned. He could be a neat freak sometimes when under stress, but Magnus never realized that was the reason, and Alec always felt appreciated when Magnus noticed.

"Yeah, I guess," he shrugged. His palms were sweating, and luckily, if Magnus noticed he could tell it was from the cleaning. "Wine?"

"Sure," Magnus said and threw his bag down, before settling on the couch.

"Long day?"

"Long enough to miss you," Magnus replied. Alec walked over to the couch with two glasses of red wine. He leaned over and gave Magnus a 'welcome home' kiss.

"Did you have dinner?"

"Yeah, Camille got us some thai food. You?"

"Yeah," Alec said. He hadn't really had dinner, but he knew if he ate something while this nervous he would just throw it back up. "What do you want to do tonight?"

"We can watch a movie? Or play a game?" Magnus suggested, but Alec could sense he was hiding something, and he knew exactly what it was now.

"Scrabble?"

"You know, I used to love scrabble, but then I met you. You're the only one who's ever defeated me," Magnus said flirtatiously, leaning closer to Alec.

"It would probably be disappointing if a writer couldn't defeat a fashion photographer at scrabble?" Alec flirted back. Magnus closed the distance, and kissed Alec's neck. To distract himself, Alec sipped the wine, hoping Magnus wouldn't notice his pulse racing.

"I have an idea. I've been watching a lot of youtubers at work, while on breaks, and I saw these guys playing a game called 'draw something on me'," Magnus said, and leaned back to explain. "Basically one person gets blindfolded, while the other one draws something on them and then they have to guess what it is," Magnus said.

"Do we have markers that will get off? It sounds messy," Alec replied.

"I'm sure I have something, somewhere." Magnus got up and searched the drawers in the kitchen. He came back with three different colors, that Alec knew hadn't been there for more than a few days, because he'd never seen them in the kitchen.

"Should we go to the bed?" Alec suggested.

"Okay," Magnus grinned. "Who goes first?"

"Rock paper scissors?" Alec suggested.

"Great." Magnus always chose rock, so naturally Alec chose paper. "I always lose," he sulked.

"You always choose rock," Alec grinned. Magnus took a scarf and covered his eyes with it. Alec held up his hand to make sure Magnus couldn't see anything. "So how do I do this?"

"Maybe I should start?"

"No, I won. I'll just draw something on you?" Alec asked, and ran his hand over Magnus' smooth chest.

"Yes," Magnus sighed. Alec took the black marker and began to write on Magnus' chest, all the while Magnus appeared to concentrate on what it was. He didn't seem to have a clue. "Is it a snake?"

"No," Alec chuckled.

"Is it a bed?"

"No." Alec leaned over and kissed Magnus' shoulder. It was less nerve-racking when Magnus couldn't see him sweating heavily.

"Chairman Meow?"

"No, that would have been a good idea to draw though," Alec said.

"I don't know what it is. Can I look?" he asked. Alec took the scarf off his boyfriend's face, and Magnus looked down at himself and read the words.

"'Say yes'?" Magnus inquired.

"I got you something," Alec reached over to his night stand and found the first edition of his book, which he handed to Magnus.

"Your first book?" Magnus smiled.

"The very first printed edition," Alec said. Magnus opened it and froze. Alec had cut out a small room between the pages to place the ring under the note "Will you marry me?"

Tears started to well up in Magnus' eyes and Alec began to panic. Had he done something wrong? Maybe Magnus had honestly wanted to propose first?

"You ruined the first edition?" Magnus replied. Alec laughed wholeheartedly. "This is perfect Alec. Just perfect."

"I'll get you one that's not ruined," Alec smiled, and pulled Magnus in for a kiss. He could taste Magnus' tears, and softly wiped them away. His boyfriend – no, his fiancé – put on the ring and it was miraculously a perfect fit.

"Ouroboros?" Magnus asked.

"Yeah. It represents…"

"Something persisting from the beginning with such force it cannot be extinguished," Magnus interrupted. "I was a bit of a nerd myself once, and I knew everything about mythological symbolism, especially if it originated in Asia," he shrugged.

"Well, then you know why I chose it," Alec smiled. "I know you didn't really feel the same way in the beginning…"

"I did. Remember? I was just too afraid to admit it," Magnus gave a nervous laugh.

"I love you so much, and I want you to marry me," Alec said. Magnus took the green marker, and wrote 'yes' on Alec's chest. "You're such a dork," he chuckled, and kissed Magnus with all of his love. Magnus looked at his ring.

"Mr. Lightwood," he tried it out.

"Mr. Lightwood-Bane," Alec corrected, and Magnus flashed a brilliant smile.

"Wait a minute," Magnus leaned back. "I was going to propose to you just now."

"Did you get me a ring?" Alec asked sweetly.

"You knew?"

"I knew. Izzy sort of told me," he shrugged.

"That sneaky little bitch," Magnus said with amazement. Magnus reached into his pocket and gave Alec a simple white gold ring with a small pattern. It wasn't flashy like Magnus', but it was very much Alec. And all it told Alec was that they knew each other perfectly well. They'd practically lived together since they met, and most people nowadays waited years before making such a commitment, but Alec knew it was the right decision, because every time he looked at Magnus he just wanted to declare his love for him to the entire world.

…

Alec was in such good mood the next couple of days, because he'd finished the outline for his next book, and he was busy rereading it to make sure there were no plot holes. But there was one distraction at the moment – he and Magnus hadn't really left the house since the proposal, and at the moment Magnus was dancing through the living room once in a while, and each time he came back in front of Alec he was wearing one less piece of clothing, while flashing his engagement ring. Alec couldn't help but look up at his fiancé each time he danced in front of him. Magnus had put on some music, and was now only wearing jeans. He walked back behind the walls to the bed, and the song ended before he came out again, now only wearing a pair of boxer briefs.

"Why did the music stop?" he wondered, and looked at the stereo.

"You didn't start the playlist," Alec grinned. Magnus found a new playlist, Alec thought he'd heard it before, Magnus usually had different phases with music. At the moment he was listening to music Alec didn't know how else to describe but with the simple word "now". The song he'd put on was very seductive and in the likes of Lana Del Rey and Lorde, but it was a male singer.

"Is Troye Sivan okay?" Magnus asked sweetly.

"I can't say, because I don't know what you have in mind?" Alec closed his laptop. Magnus walked over to him and sat down on Alec's lap with one leg on each side of Alec. When the music sped up, Magnus rolled his hips, careful not to touch Alec. Magnus was giving him a lapdance!

"I bet you've never had a lapdance before?" Magnus bit his lip, looking down at Alec. Alec let go of a single chuckle.

"No I haven't. And I didn't think it was part of a married man's life?"

"It isn't, that's why I'm giving you one now, before you get married."

"Come on, that's not fair. What if I enjoy it?" Alec asked.

"I can tell you're enjoying it already," Magnus looked down. Alec was already getting hard.

"You're half-naked on top of me. Of course I enjoy it." Alec moved to put his hands to Magnus' face, but Magnus caught his hands and held them down on each side of him, so he couldn't touch Magnus. "What…?"

"You don't touch someone when they're giving you a lapdance," Magnus whispered.

"What is this song called?" Alec smirked, because he caught on to some of the words in the background.

" _Touch_ ," Magnus grinned. "That doesn't mean you can though."

The song in the background would have been perfect for a female dancer to do a seductive lapdance, but Magnus somehow managed to make it less feminine and at points even a bit masculine. Alec couldn't touch, but he couldn't refrain from studying Magnus' lean muscles as his eyes ran over his fiancé's stomach. He was so beautiful, and Alec couldn't believe how lucky he was that he was all his. No one else would ever get a lapdance from Magnus Bane again. It was all for him.

"Have you been studying _Magic Mike_?" Alec teased.

"Shut up," Magnus breathed and rubbed his crotch against Alec's growing hard-on, making Alec gasp with surprise and painful pleasure.

"Shit," Alec leaned his head back, as Magnus continued to grind making it nearly unbearable not to flip him over on the couch and take him. Magnus turned around, and sat back on his lap, still rocking his hips in a way that made Alec go crazy. "Fuck…" he breathed. Magnus continued dancing and grinding throughout two songs, and it felt like an eternity for Alec. The seductive tone of the music only made the entire situation hotter. Alec recognized the third song, because it was the best one he'd heard Magnus' listening to from the playlist – _Wild_. By the chorus Alec couldn't contain himself anymore, Magnus was straddling him, still only wearing his boxer briefs, and Alec flipped him over on his back and pressed him down into the cushions. He kissed him with all the desire he had built up during the lapdance.

"I didn't say…" Magnus tried, but Alec pinned Magnus' hands over his head against the arm of the couch.

"Shut up," Alec breathed, mimicking Magnus' tone from before. "You're driving me wild."

"You're quoting the song," Magnus chuckled.

"It's not wrong though," Alec said and kissed him hard again. No more talking. Alec pulled his own shirt over his head, and Magnus began unbuttoning Alec's pants. Alec kicked his pants off, and quickly removed Magnus' briefs as well. He could feel Magnus' pulse racing under his touch, and it turned him on even more. "Gosh, what did I ever do…" Alec breathed, while half kissing and half licking Magnus' neck below his ear.

"You didn't do anything, Alec, you're fine. It's fine," Magnus assured him. Alec leaned up on his hands and looked down at Magnus with a wry smile.

"Did I say that out loud? Shit, I didn't finish the sentence –" He had to catch his breath before continuing. "I was thinking about what I ever did to deserve you."

Magnus looked nervous suddenly and swallowed hard. He pulled Alec back down to kiss him on his lips in a long sloppy collision of tongues and teeth and saliva. Magnus wrapped his legs around Alec's waist, inviting him to continue where they both knew this was heading. Alec reached around his lover and pressed his fingers against Magnus' entrance, making Magnus shiver under him.

"God, Alec…" Magnus breathed.

"I love you," Alec whispered against his ear. Magnus' nails dug into Alec's back as he pressed inside him. They both groaned with pleasure. Magnus arched his entire body to get a better position for both of them, it didn't look like a comfortable position for Magnus though, but Alec could now push deeper.

"Fuck," his fiancé breathed, and gripped the couch. From the reaction under him, Alec figured he'd hit the right spot right away.

"What, already?" Alec smirked.

"Do it again," Magnus moaned. Alec obeyed and did the exact same motion, and Magnus seemed to suck him in even deeper if possible. Magnus continued to tremble and whimper under him, and it nearly sent Alec over the edge, but before he could come, Magnus' body tensed and he came first. Then Alec climaxed and held on to Magnus, while his entire body tensed and then released. "Tell me why I've never tried that position before?" Magnus chuckled against the base of Alec's throat, and it tickled his skin.

"I don't know. Why haven't you?" Alec gave him a smirk. "I can't wait to be married to you, if this is what I get for an engagement ring."

"We're practically married anyway," Magnus shrugged. "At least as close to being married as I've ever been."

"We're practically a couple of lesbians is that it?"

"Enough with the stereotypes," Magnus grinned, and kissed Alec again, this time it was a sweet and controlled kiss. No more urgency, no more roughness, just pure sweetness.

"Do you think we should maybe talk about a wedding date? We've been locked up in the apartment for three days, we should announce it to someone," Alec said.

"I already told Izzy," Magnus replied.

" _You_ told Izzy?"

"Of course she already knew. Did you think she thought I would say 'no'?"

"I guess not," Alec shrugged. "Oh gosh, I have to tell Jace."

"Why do you say it like that? Do you think it'll crush his dreams that you're getting married?"

"Magnus that's not…"

"I was kidding. But now I'm getting a bit worried. Should I worry?"

"God no. Magnus," Alec sat up in the couch. "He's my brother, why would you even ask that?"

"I don't know. I just get insecure sometimes, it's hard to believe, I know. I've never been scared like this before you. I've never had someone that I didn't want to share with anyone," Magnus admitted and leaned up on his elbows.

"You've never had a monogamous relationship?" Alec asked. He knew Magnus hadn't been very monogamous before him, he just thought maybe he'd had some _one_ before. He'd always been sort of mysterious about his past relationships, and the only one Alec really knew about was Will, and maybe Woolsey too, but he wasn't entirely sure about that one.

"Of course I've been in relationships, I just haven't been afraid of seeing them with someone else."

"Who have you had relationships with?" Alec tried to sound casual. Magnus frowned at him. "Come on, maybe it would be a good thing to tell each other these things before we get married? Maybe I should know about your exes?"

"I know about your exes, you don't have any. You only have people you dated," Magnus replied.

"So? Mine was easy. It'll be a short conversation, unless of course…"

"There's not a lot. Relationships that is." Magnus sat up and reached for his underwear. Alec waited patiently. "Seven years ago there was a woman named Etta. We had fun, she came around whenever she pleased, and I didn't mind. But when we weren't together, I never worried about what she was doing."

"You worry about me when I'm out?"

"Not really, you're only out with Izzy and Simon," Magnus teased.

"Thanks." Alec knew he didn't have a lot of friends here in New York, he didn't need his fiancé to point it out.  
"I worry when we're out together, and I see the way others look at you. I worry that you notice and you realize you haven't tried anything other than being with me," Magnus admitted.

"I do notice, and I don't care. At all," Alec assured him. "Has there been others?"

"I'm not done. Etta was someone I once thought would be the one I would spent the rest of my life with. She fell in love with me instantly, it took me a bit longer, but I did love her. I was just never really in love with her," Magnus explained.

"What happened?" Alec couldn't believe Magnus had never told him the story.

"She realized I didn't love her the same way, and I didn't want to have a family with her, which was what she wanted," Magnus said.

"Do you think… you want a family now?" Alec wasn't sure what he wanted, but he was certain that if he wanted a family it would be with Magnus. Still, he thought it was important to at least ask Magnus what he wanted. He looked at Alec with an odd expression.

"Alec, I admit I haven't thought much about it. And I'm sorry if I've made jokes about…" Magnus stopped himself. Alec knew why – he'd made fun of them being "mommy and daddy", but he'd never thought that was actually what Alec wanted some day.

"It's fine. I don't care. All I want is you," Alec shrugged.

"Alec, I'm not saying I don't want more, I just never thought it would be a possibility for us, not because we're gay, but because I've been busy thinking about our future together, the two of us."

"You thought of our future?"

"Of course. I've even thought about travelling the world with you," Magnus said. "I've thought about us as the gay uncles, who our nieces and nephews will visit every summer, just like you visited Aunt Sophie every summer."

Alec had to wipe away the tears of joy that now filled his eyes.

"I like the sound of that," Alec replied, when he'd composed himself.

"Good," Magnus smiled triumphantly. "Now, can we stop talking about exes?"

"I don't know. I kinda liked how this conversation turned out," Alec said.

"Now about those wedding plans," Magnus started. "I want Chairman Meow to be our ring bearer."

"That's not going to happen, unless we're having the wedding here at the loft just the three of us?"

"That's not a bad idea…" Magnus mused, and Alec punched him softly. "Ouch, okay, that's probably not a good idea."

"My mom would never forgive us."

"What about Izzy?"

"She would find a way to be here no matter what," Alec shrugged, very sure of his sister's stubbornness.

"I was thinking, Clary and Jace's wedding was beautiful with the winter theme and all, but what if we had a summer themed wedding at the same place? The barn was perfect," Magnus suggested.

"Yeah?" Alec couldn't contain his happiness, and he was sure he was smiling across his entire face.

"We could have our wedding on the day we met," he continued.

"You remember which day we met?"

"It was a Friday, it's perfect, because that means it will be a Saturday," Magnus said. He really sounded like he'd thought this through, but he also sounded very casual about it and like he honestly only wanted it if Alec was okay with it.

"I'm not sure I want a big wedding like Jace and Clary's though," Alec shrugged. The thought of everybody staring at him for an entire day was a bit nerve-racking. The thought of getting married to a man in front of everyone he loved was just as nerve-racking, because despite the support he had in his life, he knew that some people were still judging.

"We'll invite whoever you want to," Magnus said.

"Just our closest friends maybe? And of course we have to invite Aunt Sophie, we sort of promised her, didn't we?" he smirked.

"That sounds perfect. Speaking of closest friends…" Magnus hesitated, "and speaking of exes…"

"You mean Woolsey?" Alec asked, and Magnus gave him an apologetic shrug. "I sort of knew something might have been between you two."

"I'm sorry I never told you. It was always casual between us, nothing more and definitely nothing like Etta," Magnus assured him.

"I know." Alec leaned over to kiss Magnus, but his fiancé shied away from him. Alec gave him a frown, but Magnus looked down at his hands. "What?"

"I'm a terrible person," he said in a low voice. Alec felt his veins turn to ice. He feared the worst, and the turn of this conversation wasn't something he liked very much. He was nearly certain from the guilty look on Magnus' face that he'd cheated on him. Alec reached for his clothes, got to his feet and quickly put it on. "Alec…"

"You slept with him?"

"No! It's not that. I kissed him," Magnus admitted. Alec couldn't help but feel a tinge of relief, but still, frustration was starting to take over and he wiped his face with his palm to calm himself.

"You kissed Woolsey?"

"On Christmas Eve. I was upset, and somehow… I didn't plan to tell you, I just…"

"What kind of kiss?" Alec cursed himself for asking, but he had to know, because now he felt a bit sick in his stomach – a feeling of jealousy.

"A small one?" Magnus tried, but Alec gave him a tired glare. "We were talking, and then next thing I kissed him, and he broke it off."

"He broke it off?"

"I would have broken it off if he hadn't. Please, I was mad and upset, and it was Christmas Eve," Magnus begged.

"What if I upset you some other time?"

"Don't upset me?" he offered.

"It wasn't exactly my intention. Are you seriously making this my fault?" Alec raised his voice. Magnus stood up and stepped closer.

"Please, it was just a kiss. It wasn't something I wanted, it just happened."

"That doesn't make me feel any better!" Alec explained.

"It doesn't mean anything like it will ever happen again," Magnus said.

"How will you prevent something that 'just happens'?"

"That's not fair, Alec, I think you know that," Magnus answered calmly.

"I'm sorry if I'm not all that rational right now, I just found out my boyfriend cheated on me not even a month before I proposed to him," Alec sighed.

"And I had just found out my boyfriend betrayed me, doesn't that make up for my irrational action?"

"I hear what you're saying, but it's not really helping the pain I feel right now," Alec said and went to get his covers from the bed, before he settled down on the couch.

"What are you doing?"

"I'll take the couch tonight," he replied.

"Come on. Alec?"

Alec just looked up at Magnus with a stern expression, and Magnus left the living room area.

* * *

 _ **I don't know what happened, suddenly Magnus confessed his minor incident with Woolsey and they were fighting again, and I'm very sorry. It's a small fight though, and they'll make up very soon!**_

 _ **But, yay, they got engaged! I hope you enjoyed the proposal and the lapdance. I searched for some music that Magnus might have on his playlist, and I ended up getting obsessed with Troye Sivan's music.**_


	26. Chapter 26

**You Can Call Me Maxwell**

"You have to forgive him," Izzy said the next day, when Alec met up with her and Simon.

"I know I do. It's just… he didn't think the kiss counted as cheating. How do I cope with that? I mean, I would definitely say kissing is cheating."

"I know Woolsey a little by now, and even I probably wouldn't give up an opportunity to kiss him," Izzy shrugged. Alec frowned, because that was her boss she was talking about and he didn't think it was really appropriate.

"Hold up. What?!" Simon interrupted.

"What? He's a gentleman," Izzy replied.

"You don't think a kiss is cheating? I mean, I understand if Magnus had been going for a kiss on the cheek and Woolsey accidentally had turned his head, but that's not what happened, right?" Simon said.

"Thank you," Alec said a bit surprised at the support from Simon.

"It's not like they made out," Izzy continued to defend Magnus.

"It's not the fact that they didn't go any further, it's the fact that it happened and he didn't consider it cheating. He probably only told me, because he wanted to make sure we had the same opinion when it comes to what cheating is. Don't tell me he wouldn't get jealous if I had kissed Woolsey," Alec said. Izzy frowned at the thought.

"He's not really your type, is he?"

"He's not exactly Magnus' type either, you think? That's the point I'm trying to make. It doesn't matter who it is," Alec explained for the fiftiest time, or so it seemed.

"Didn't they have a history, wasn't that why he brought it up?" Simon wondered.

"Yes. See, that only makes it worse."

"But it was a casual thing? And they're friends now, it can't have been that significant a relationship?" Izzy continued.

"We're getting nowhere with this discussion," Alec sighed deeply.

"With what discussion?" He heard his fiancé's voice behind him, and turned around to see the familiar face.

"Sorry, I called him. This seemed to be a time for an intervention," Izzy shrugged. Alec scowled at Simon.

"Don't look at me, I'm on your side. Ouch!" Simon exclaimed, and Alec figured Izzy had kicked him under the table.

"Look, Alec, babe, this is ridiculous," Magnus sat down next to Alec.

"I know, I just think we need to at least set some boundaries and talk about what we consider cheating. I still think you cheated on me," Alec said.

"And I still think it would have only counted as cheating if my heart had been in it, which it totally wasn't," Magnus assured him once again. Alec was starting to see how utterly insane this small fight and bickering was, but he just couldn't help but feel insecure about the situation. He knew he had Magnus' heart. He just didn't know if it was enough.

"I just want to know what I'm getting into. I'm sure you wouldn't like to hear about me kissing some other guy?"

"Of course not. I didn't tell you because I thought you would like it. I told you, because I wanted to be honest, so it didn't slip out somehow at a bad time." Magnus put his hand on Alec's.

"Hold up," Simon interrupted. The two of them looked at their friend at the same time.

"What?"

"You're engaged? You're totally engaged!" he grinned. Alec narrowed his eyes, unsure of what was happening, then he realized and looked at his sister.

"You didn't tell him?"

"I must have forgotten," she shrugged apologetically.

"This is so great you guys," Simon cheered.

"A minute ago you were on my side?" Alec said.

"Well, doesn't your side want you to marry Magnus?" Simon asked. That hadn't been what Alec meant, and he had to think for a moment.

"Of course," he said.

"You hesitated?" Magnus noted.

"What? No, I didn't. We were talking about something else. I'm not even considering not to marry you, I'm sorry if that's what you thought," Alec explained.

"Then what were you doing? Planning my punishment?" Magnus wriggled his eyebrows.

"No! I was planning a way for us to agree on what we consider cheating. If I had kissed Woolsey the way you did, would you be jealous?" Alec asked.

"You wouldn't kiss someone unless your heart was in it. You're not me," Magnus tried.

"Wrong answer," Simon looked seriously worried for Magnus now. Alec ignored him.

"That's a bit of a double standard you have," Alec replied.

"I can see that now," Magnus nodded. "I'm sorry," he looked Alec in the eye when he said it, and Alec believed him. "From now on, you will be the only person I will ever kiss," he added.

"Great, I'm glad we got that cleared up. Now, how are we going to plan the wedding?" Izzy began, and she already had a pen and notebook ready.

"Wedding? Screw that, how are we spending the bachelor party?" Simon grinned.

"Simon, a wedding needs a bit more planning than a bachelor party," Izzy informed her boyfriend. Magnus looked at Alec, and once he had his attention and they were both ignoring their moronic friends, he leaned in and kissed Alec softly. When Alec looked back at his sister and Simon, they were both gazing at the two of them dreamily.

"Knock it off," Alec rolled his eyes and leaned back in his seat.

"Actually, we have a few ideas for the wedding," Magnus said.

"Great! Do you have a date?" Izzy lightened up.

Magnus explained everything they'd discussed so far, about the barn where Jace and Clary got married, and the date being the day they met. Izzy did a bad job at acting professional and objective to the situation, though she tried. The four of them stayed and talked about wedding plans for a few hours after that, and the fight was completely forgotten. There was no way Alec could stay mad at Magnus for too long, when he knew his anger had been superficial and unnecessary. He had nothing to worry about with Magnus and Woolsey, he knew that deep down. It had been nothing like the time he found out about Will. Alec knew both Magnus and Woolsey very well, and despite his imagination of how the two had once been, he couldn't help but realize how they were now – two old friends who would always have each other's back and nothing more and nothing less.

…

After a long day out with Simon and Izzy, Magnus and Alec were just ready to go home and collapse on the couch, and Magnus had insisted on taking a "short-cut". Instead they ended up almost getting mugged. Alec didn't know where his sharp senses came from, or perhaps the blue-haired kid had wanted to get caught sticking his fingers into Magnus' pocket, but either way Alec reflexively grabbed the kid's hand, before he could run off with Magnus' wallet.

"Hey!" the kid yelled.

"That doesn't belong to you," Alec said, holding on to his hand, though he tried to get away. He was skinny and didn't seem to possess much bodily strength.

"My wallet!" Magnus exclaimed and took it back. "Alec, let go of the little bastard."  
"He'll run away?"

"So? I have my wallet."

"You usually leave your wallet at cafés, that's not why I'm holding him. We need to teach this kid a lesson. He probably steals unfortunate tourists' wallets all the time," Alec said. The kid wasn't even listening. He was now putting all of his weight into getting his hand back; Alec didn't even have to make much effort to keep him put.

"What's your name?" Magnus looked up and down at the kid.

"What's in it to you?" the kid retorted, struggling to get away.

"I won't report you if that's what you're worried about," Magnus rolled his eyes.

"Tell your friend to let go of me and maybe I'll tell you."

"My friend? That's cute," Magnus chuckled. "Alec, would you let go of him?"

"I won't run away," the kid promised, but Alec could sense a fake promise. Still, he let go and the kid set into a run down the street in the opposite direction of where they were going.

"I told you he would run away."

"Yeah, well I got my wallet," he said, and they continued to walk a few steps. "My boyfriend is a real hero," he added with a smirk. Alec put his hands in his pockets and noticed something –

"He took my wallet!" he exclaimed. Magnus tried not to laugh for a few seconds, but couldn't stop himself. "It's not funny! It had my driver's license and everything!"

"Should we follow him? I think I know where the kids are staying these days," Magnus said.

"What do you mean?"

"There's a bunch of homeless kids around town, they move around, but they have a few places where they are usually staying," Magnus explained and began walking in the direction of where the kid had disappeared. It almost broke Alec's heart, and he almost told Magnus not to bother, but perhaps they could help the kids with something. It was dark outside and the thought of kids staying on the street during night nearly destroyed him, especially when he saw the abandoned place they were staying. Magnus had pulled him into a building that seemed to be ready to be taken down any time now. A few kids were coughing as if they were seriously sick. Most of them had covered themselves up with blankets. It wasn't all kids, there were a few young adults too. At least the kid wouldn't be difficult to recognize, due to his navy blue hair.

"Hey Blueberry," Magnus called, when he spotted the kid. He looked stunned that they had bothered to follow him, but soon just leaned back on what Alec suspected had once been a mattress, but was now a filthy piece of fabric.

"I underestimated you guys," the kid said superiorly.

"I want my wallet. You can't use my ID anyway, we look nothing alike," Alec sighed.

"I don't have it," he shrugged.

"I'll give you a hundred dollars for it?" Magnus offered. Alec was just about to object, when the kid shrugged and got to his feet.

"Fine," he sighed and held out the wallet. Magnus paid up. "I guess your wallet was worth more anyway. This guy only had a few bucks," the kid eyed Alec as if he was a disgrace. Alec frowned.

"What's your name?" Magnus asked again.

"Max. You can call me Maxwell," he said. Alec's heart began to ache. He had to be about the same age his brother was. This kid had all odds against him, living on the street, while Alec's younger brother had come from a good family and had had a bright future ahead of him.

"Isn't it usually the other way around? People don't use the longer versions of your name for nicknames," Magnus mused. "I'll just continue to call you Blueberry," he added.

"Whatever," the kid sat back down on the mattress.

"Maxwell, you're too skinny, I barely put any effort into holding you back," Alec said.

"Yeah, go ahead, rub it in," he replied angrily.

"How would you like a real meal?" Alec offered. Magnus turned his expression of surprise towards him instantly. Alec knew Magnus must have thought the same – he was the one who had once taken home an abandoned kitten because he couldn't bear the thought of it starving in the street.

"And a bath. You reek," Magnus shrugged.

"I'm not into any weird stuff."

"We're not asking you to do any weird stuff. We're asking you home for dinner, hopefully you won't rob our home," Magnus looked at Alec for the last part, as if warning him beforehand that the kid most likely would rob them.

"I can't make any promises." Maxwell got to his feet anyway.

…

The young teenager went through the apartment, picking everything up as if to see if it was real, and Magnus followed him around to make sure nothing ended up in Maxwell's pocket, while Alec made dinner for them.

"Are you really homeless or are you just some kid who got tired of his parents?" Magnus wondered, while putting down a hideous vase Camille once gave him, after Maxwell nearly dropped it on the floor.

"Does it matter?"

"Someone has to help dye your hair, maybe it's your mother? I don't want to be accused of kidnapping if you have a lovely family somewhere who just pissed you off," Magnus replied casually. The kid frowned at Magnus.

"Is he for real?" he looked towards Alec.

"Yes," Alec said. The kid then found Alec's book on top of a dresser.

"You're a writer? That's your picture, right?" he held up the book.

"Mmhmm," Alec replied. He busied himself with making pasta, because he didn't want a homeless teenager to judge him for having a career. The kid had the attitude of a tiny rebel or perhaps even an anarchist. Maxwell looked inside the first edition and his eyebrows met once again.

"You cut a hole in it?"

Magnus stepped closer to show him the ring on his finger.

"He made a very creative proposal and gave me this ring," he explained. Maxwell looked at his hand.

"Which one?"

"The one on my ring finger of course," Magnus retorted. "Okay, so you don't have parents. Where do you come from then?"

"I did run away," Maxwell admitted suddenly.

"Oh?"

"From a foster home," he continued.

"Ah. You ended up in a bad home?"

"No, it was lovely. It was this lesbian couple, and they had other foster kids, but then I fell in love with their biological child and screwed everything up," he lied.

"That's the plot of _abc's The Fosters_ ," Magnus sighed. "Fine, you don't have to tell us. Let's just have dinner?" Alec had no idea what they were talking about, so he just ignored the last part of the conversation for a moment. He made a plate with dinner for each, and they sat down at the kitchen island. Maxwell looked hungry, once he started eating he kept shoving food into his mouth.

"How are you able to watch _abc_?" Alec wondered. The question seemed to surprise him a bit, and he swallowed the food he'd been shoving his face with.

"I have friends," he shrugged.

"Can't you stay with your friends?" Magnus asked.

"No? They're not adults, they have parents. I had a foster sister who was obsessed with the show once, but she got back to her real parents," he shrugged.

"What family did you run away from?" Alec asked. Maxwell looked uncomfortable suddenly and pushed his plate away. "I mean, maybe we can help you?"

Maxwell shook his head.

"You can't. No one really cares about foster kids' safety," he shrugged.

"That's what I mean, maybe they would care if your story was backed up by two adults?"

Maxwell seemed to contemplate the idea for a minute.

"I would just mess up your lives as well. But, you know, thanks for dinner," he said and got to his feet. He went to the door, and hesitated for a moment. "You seem like a nice and happy couple," he added, and pulled out some of Magnus' jewellery and his iPhone from his pockets, and placed them on the nearest table. "I'm sorry," he shrugged. Magnus and Alec were both too stunned to do anything about the fact that they'd nearly been robbed by a kid.

"You're welcome?" Magnus said, and Maxwell walked out of the apartment. Alec came back to his senses then.

"We appealed to his conscience," Alec said. "We can't let him go back to the street. They will just find him and put him back in the system for another random family," he continued. Magnus sighed, because he probably knew where Alec was going with this.

"We can't just take in a stray kid? There might be consequences?"

"So? Don't you think we can deal with consequences?" Alec asked.

"I'm not sure Alec…"

"Only temporarily? Till they find him a permanent family to live with?"

"Don't we need a license or something to foster a kid?"

"It shouldn't be that difficult?" Alec thought.

"We're a gay unmarried couple, who's been together for six months?"

"We don't have to tell them how long we've been together. We can lie about that. Let's say three years instead? And emphasize our engagement," Alec suggested.

"You really want to do this?"

"It just feels like we're meant to help him," Alec shrugged, because he didn't know where this feeling was coming from. Magnus gave him a compassionate smile.

"It's his name, isn't it?" he figured.

"Maybe? I don't really know," Alec admitted. Magnus got out of his chair.

"I'll see if I can catch him before he's gone," he said and left the apartment.

Magnus was gone for almost fifteen minutes, and Alec had started to wonder how much effort Magnus was putting into convincing the kid to come back. Eventually both of them came back to the loft. Maxwell looked conscience-stricken and Alec couldn't help but wonder what Magnus might have said to him.

"I'm sorry I thought you guys were fools, for wanting to help me. Well, I still think you are, but I'm willing to accept your offer of letting me stay here for now," he said very politely.

"You're welcome," Alec smiled.

"I hope you're not allergic to cats?" Magnus said. The kid shook his head and looked around the apartment, probably thinking Magnus was an idiot, because Chairman Meow had been hiding all the time the kid had been there. Although he must have noticed the countless cat toys lying around.

Magnus began to find extra sheets and blankets for the kid to sleep in, and a towel so Maxwell could have a shower before bedtime.

"There's a cat here somewhere. He's shy," Alec explained with a shrug.

…

While the kid took a shower, Alec and Magnus decided they needed to report Maxwell's situation the following day. They would just have to make a convincing story of why they should be his temporary foster care until the system wanted to help him. The kid seemed to have a history of running away from foster homes, from what Magnus had told Alec. Apparently they had had quite a talk outside.

"I just hope we can help him in some way," Alec said and leaned his head down on Magnus' shoulder. They sat on the couch, while talking it over.

"That's what I love about you. You care so much for others," Magnus turned his head and kissed Alec's hair, reminding Alec of his hair situation.

"I should really get a haircut, shouldn't I?"

"Gosh no! I love your hair," Magnus replied quickly.

"I'm getting a haircut before the wedding," Alec thought his words were final.

"Then I won't have sex with you on our honey moon." Alec looked up to see if his fiancé was serious. He looked very serious. "Alright, but only an inch goes." Alec chuckled. This fight wasn't over. Magnus wasn't the boss of Alec's hair.

"I think I just threw up a little in my mouth," the voice came from behind the couch. Alec turned his head to look at a smirking, but clean, teenager.

"This is going to be fun, isn't it?" Magnus smirked back.

"So much fun," the kid replied, his voice covered with sarcasm.

…

It had been a long day, and a lot had happened. Alec and Magnus had agreed on what they thought counted as cheating, Izzy had assigned herself as their wedding planner, Simon unofficially announced himself planner of the bachelor party, because as he pointed out "Jace is so far away". Then they almost got mugged, and now they were home and they'd brought the little criminal with them. It was all both overwhelming and exciting at the same time. They were now very ready to go to sleep, and Alec pulled Magnus closer to him in the bed, cuddling his fiancé. Magnus turned his head to get it closer to Alec's ear.

"We won't be able to have sex while we foster a kid," Magnus whispered. Maxwell was already fast asleep and snoring a little.

"We'll just have to get creative. We don't have to have sex at home you know," Alec whispered back, and he could just barely see Magnus' smirk in the dark.

* * *

 _ **I've been wanting to include "Blueberry" for a while now, and it seemed like the right time. I don't have much else planned out for the story right now, so if you have any kind of idea I would love to hear about it (as usual)!**_ _ **I hope you enjoyed this first chapter of the year.**_


	27. Chapter 27

**Office Sex**

Magnus was still asleep, when Alec got up the next morning. He picked up the cat, who had placed himself on Alec's face as usual, and walked into the living room area. He froze once he noticed the couch was empty. There was only the sign that someone had slept there. But he relaxed once he heard the water running in the bathroom. A minute later, Maxwell came out into the living room.

"Good morning," Alec said. "Do you drink coffee?"

"Sure," the kid shrugged.

"Really? How old are you?" Alec frowned.

"Fourteen."

"That's not healthy," he replied. Maxwell folded his arms across his chest. To be honest, the kid didn't look fourteen; he looked younger, but acted older.

"When did you start drinking coffee, Mr Big-Shot-Writer?"

Alec thought about it for a minute, and he had probably been around fourteen or fifteen when he started drinking coffee to his mother's great dismay. It wasn't like caffeine was hard drugs, but it was addictive.

"Good point," he just replied, because he didn't want to lie to the kid either just to make a point.

Alec went to make them some coffee, and found breakfast for the kid as well. Maxwell sat down by the kitchen island.

"Your boyfriend…" Maxwell began.

"Fiancé," Alec corrected before he could stop himself.

"Fiancé, what does he do?" The kid narrowed his eyes, as if he was trying to imagine Magnus in a specific career.

"He's a fashion photographer," Alec replied.

"I thought it was something in fashion," he snapped his fingers, as if Alec had said just what he'd been thinking. The kid was a little sarcastic and snarky, and he made Alec think of him as an old man in a teenage body, just like Alec had probably been once. He'd never been a kid for long himself.

"So Maxwell, what do you do?" Alec said, as he handed the kid a cup of freshly made coffee. "I mean, when you are not stealing people's wallets?"

"I just hang around," he shrugged.

"What, no school? I thought a genius like you would have gotten into college by now," Alec winked.

"Ha ha," he replied flatly. "You're not very good with kids, are you?"

"You don't seem to see yourself as a kid?" Alec said, and Maxwell looked down into his coffee. It made Alec feel bad for joking around, he'd overstepped and hurt his feelings. "You must be enrolled somewhere?"

"I am, I just don't go there often."

"Okay. Why?" Alec kept all judgment out of his voice, because he honestly wanted to help the kid.

"I feel like a freak there," he shrugged.

"Have you tried not dyeing your hair blue?"

"I see, you write comedy, don't you?" Maxwell said, hiding his amusement well.

"I don't think you're a freak, Maxwell."

"Well, you're an adult, so you're supposed to know better than to tell people they're freaks," he sneered.

"Maybe we can arrange for you to get into a new school?"

"I've already been to six different schools."

"I sometimes forget how big New York is," Alec sighed.

"Are you going to tell the system where I am?"

"We have to. Keeping you here would be like kidnapping," Alec shrugged apologetically.

"Not if I'm here willingly?"

"Are you? Or did Magnus threaten you somehow, 'cause I just wouldn't know, would I?" Alec mused. As if on cue, Magnus came to the kitchen, while stretching his arms.

"Uh, is there any more coffee?" he asked. Alec poured a cup for him and he joined them at the table. "What are you talking about?"

"We need to help Maxwell get back into school, and most importantly, we need to find him a nice family for once," Alec said. He felt a new sort of energy for the day, and he was ready to be useful and help a kid find a home.

…

Maxwell seemed to panic every time Magnus or Alec mentioned anything about bringing him back into foster care. Eventually, Maxwell had revealed how he'd been beaten every time he came home a few minutes late or the foster parents didn't like something he did. Alec had a feeling that he was exaggerating the stories a bit. Supposedly they knew how to beat him without him bruising too much, but there was no faking the terror that showed in his eyes whenever the possibility of him going back came up.

"What about your real parents?" Magnus wondered. The question had come up several times, but he'd always avoided the answer. It seemed that the topic hurt the kid even more than the beating.

"They don't want me," he replied quietly.

"Why?"

The kid just shrugged.

"Because I'm a freak!"

"You keep saying that, but I don't know what that means? Do you have an extra toe or something?" Magnus asked casually. Alec could sense that Maxwell didn't like the conversation very much, and he couldn't help but curse Magnus for asking these questions with such ease.

"You don't have to feel like a freak around us. You're talking to a guy who grew up thinking he was a freak, because of his feelings for other boys," Alec said.

"And I had a stepdad who beat the crap out of my mom and at times me too," Magnus added, instantly seeing where Alec was going with his tactic.

"I'm intersex. So I'm an actual circus freak," Maxwell sighed, and fidgeted with his fingers. Alec wasn't sure what that meant exactly, and he looked at Magnus for help. Magnus looked taken aback, but compassionate.

"That's nothing to be ashamed of, and it definitely doesn't make you a freak. Is that what your parents told you?" Magnus replied. Maxwell just shrugged. Alec was torn, he wasn't sure how to ask, because it seemed ignorant of him to not know. "We need to find you a family who are willing to learn everything there is to know about intersex, and how to help you. Have you gotten any treatment?"

"My parents didn't even want kids, they raised me as a girl for four years, before the system took me away from them. But I'm not a girl!" Maxwell raised his voice at the last part. Now something sparked Alec's memory – intersex was someone born both male and female.

"No, you're not," Magnus said warmly.

…

"He's been through a lot, Alec," Izzy warned him. They had dropped Maxwell off at Izzy and Simon's, before going to report Maxwell's whereabouts. Alec and Magnus had done everything in their power to explain Maxwell's situation. Now Maxwell had spent half the day with Izzy, and she had pulled Alec aside before they could go home. "What's the verdict?"

"He can stay with us for a couple of days, before they find him a home. Potentially a group home for LGBTQ kids," Alec explained in a low voice, so they couldn't hear them inside the apartment.

"He's not LGBTQ, he's intersex," she said.

"Didn't they add the 'I' and the 'A' at some point?" Alec mused. He wasn't really sure what the 'I' would stand for, but he thought intersex was a reasonable suggestion. Izzy frowned at his response. "Alright, his parents wanted to raise him as a girl, doesn't that make him transgender?"

"No, 'cause he's intersex, he's not entirely girl," Izzy replied, using her tone to express that she thought it was obvious.

"It's not the same thing, I get that, but don't you think he would be better off in a house with transgender kids than with other kids?"

"I don't know, Alec, I don't have that kind of insight," she sighed.

"Well, it's the only reasonable option we have, so there's that," he shrugged.

"You're right. Did you know he introduced himself as Max, but he wants me to call him Maxwell?"

"Max is a unisex name, it could be short for many names," Alec had realized this too. Max might as well have been short for Maxine, and that's probably why he wanted them to call him Maxwell, even though after going through some of his legal papers, Alec now knew he was just named Max. The door to the apartment opened, and Magnus and Maxwell stepped outside.

"We're ready to go home," Magnus said, his hand resting on Maxwell's shoulder. Alec nodded and thanked Izzy for looking out for Maxwell.

"Any time," she smiled.

…

Maxwell stayed with them for the next week, while they tried to get him into one of the LGBTQ group homes in New York. Alec was the one to spend most of his time with Maxwell, and he even brought him to the bookstore to see Alec's now published book in the window. It was finally in stores, and he couldn't be more excited. Though Maxwell's mood seemed to kill Alec's mood a bit, once they reached the end of the week and they all knew what might happen then.

"Do you think I could hang out with Izzy before I go?" Maxwell asked one day. It almost sounded like he wanted to say goodbye, and it nearly broke Alec's heart.

"Of course, but it's not like you won't see us. You can visit us any time you want, and we'll visit you, if you want us to?" Alec thought he needed to make this clear.

"I know, she's just so cool. I like hanging out with her," he shrugged.

"You're not planning to run away, are you? I will tell you, she is just as fast as I am, and as strong," Alec warned him.

"Yeah, right," the kid chuckled.

"You don't believe me?"

"Sure," he shrugged again. They were standing outside of the bookstore, and Maxwell didn't seem much interested. Alec would have bought him a copy of his book, but he could do that any time.

"How about we go see if she's home right now?" he suggested instead. Maxwell's eyes lit up at that, and they went to Izzy's.

While the kid had stayed with Alec and Magnus, he'd started acting more like an actual kid, and not a small adult. It made Alec think that all Maxwell needed was some ground rules and boundaries, and to be a child for a while, before getting out into the real world.

Izzy was home. She decided to take Maxwell with her to work, even though it was a bar, he promised her he wouldn't steal any booze. It left Alec without anything to do during the afternoon. He could go home to write on his next book, but he and Magnus hadn't been alone for over a week now, so he went to his studio to see if his fiancé had time for a visit.

Magnus sat in front of his computer, his eyes almost closed, holding his chin up with his hand.

"You look busy?" Alec grinned. Magnus jumped, and probably hadn't seen him come in.

"I'm so so busy," Magnus smirked. "But not too busy to see my fiancé."

"Gross," Camille's voice sounded from the small room next to Magnus' office. "Can I leave?" she asked.

"Hi Camille," Alec smiled.

"Lightwood," she replied. "Can I leave?"

"Sure, go ahead, Camille." Camille looked relieved and left in a hurry.

Alec walked over to Magnus' desk, and leaned against it.

"I left Maxwell with Izzy," he smiled down at his beautiful fiancé, and the smile was returned.

"Did you now? And you thought you would visit me?" Magnus tugged at Alec's coat, pulling him closer. Alec fell down onto Magnus' lap, and kissed him the way he usually did, when they didn't have a kid around them. "You know, if we ever have a kid, this is what it would be like," Magnus said.

"Mmh. Office sex?" Alec mused. Magnus chuckled.

"Oh you think you're going to get some right now?" Magnus wondered.

"Oh I know I am," Alec smirked.

"Babe, I'm exhausted," Magnus sighed. "This shoot is driving me nuts. And then… I haven't told you that, erh…"

"What?" Alec stood up, worried suddenly. "Is something wrong?"

"No. No, nothing's wrong. I'm having a shoot with Will and Tessa next week," Magnus explained.

"Oh." Alec had to digest this information for a moment. "Why?"

"They are writing and directing this big Broadway play, and they insisted I did their pictures."

"Why would they want that?" Alec asked. Magnus frowned, and Alec realized what he'd done wrong.

"You know, some people actually like my work," he replied.

"I didn't mean it like that. It came out wrong," Alec tried. He reached out and took Magnus' hand, the one with the ring he'd bought him.

"You don't have to worry, you know?"

"I know," Alec smiled softly. "Come here."

Magnus stood up and leaned against Alec, in a long hug. Alec held him for as long as he needed, feeling how stressed out his fiancé was. Magnus' arms tightened around Alec's waist, and he began to kiss him softly, but with a certain amount of passion. Alec knew what he wanted then, he knew Magnus so well by now. He started undressing Magnus, and then himself. It was sort of exciting to do this in Magnus' office, where only half of the room were walls and the rest were windows looking out on the street. They were on the 16th floor, so people on the street wouldn't be able to see them, but it still added to the excitement of making out with his fiancé naked for New York to see them if they wanted to. Alec caught all of Magnus' needful gasps, whenever he touched Magnus just the right places to tease him. Alec softly pressed Magnus down to lean over the desk.

"Should we lock the door?" he asked.

"No one's here, just fuck me," Magnus breathed. Alec chuckled, and obeyed Magnus. Magnus lost his grip, and fell over the desk, while Alec fucked him against it. It wasn't the best position for them, and Alec couldn't see Magnus' expression, so he pulled away, turned Magnus around and lifted his fiancé's legs over his shoulder, while Magnus' back was flat against the desk. Alec pressed inside him again, and leaned down to kiss Magnus softly, earning a few moans in return. Magnus was just about to climax, and his eyes rolled up under his eyelids, but Alec froze as he caught movement at the corner of his eye. Magnus didn't notice anything and groaned loudly as he came, before Alec pulled out of him and grabbed his clothes to cover himself up. By the door, a stranger leaned against the doorframe with his arms crossed. He was wearing a very noticeable green suit, which was probably the only reason he had caught Alec's eye.

"Don't stop on my account," he smirked. Magnus' head jerked up.

"Fuck! What the heck are you doing here?!" Magnus exclaimed and grabbed his own clothes. Both of them got dressed faster than ever before.

"Is that a way to great an old friend?"

"Do you make a habit of watching 'old friends' have sex?" Magnus demanded. Alec was beyond confused. The older man still had that smirk on his face, but his eyes turned to Alec and he dropped the smile. The two other men had a moment of silent communication, which Alec couldn't interpret. "Alec, this is Ragnor Fell, my _old friend_. You know, the one who makes a habit of having sex with teenagers," Magnus said accusingly.

"He's just mad I walked in on him having sex again. I should probably learn to knock, or you know, you could learn to lock your doors," Ragnor replied. "By the way, they're always eighteen or older. We made an agreement, remember?" Ragnor's eyes ran over Alec once again.

"Alec is twenty-one. And I'm not forty yet," Magnus crossed his arms. Alec continued to get more and more confused. He'd thought Ragnor was Magnus' friend? They didn't sound like friends.

"Ouch," Ragnor said flatly. "Don't worry, Alec. It's all friendly."

"You didn't tell me what you're doing here? In New York," Magnus said. Ragnor sighed deeply, and Alec noticed Magnus get pale. "Did something happen to Raphael?"

"No, it's nothing like that. The little brat convinced me to come here, and you know I can't resist a challenge," the man shrugged.

"What? Of course you can, you like to watch other people make stupid challenges, you never accept one of your own. What did he say to you?"

"He told me he is staying with Woolsey."

"And?"

"And that if I didn't want him back, then he would pursue him instead, the man is wealthier than I am anyway," Ragnor admitted. Alec didn't think he looked too heartbroken about it though.

"Oh my gosh, you care about him," Magnus rolled his eyes. Alec kicked Magnus' leg. "Those two are incapable of loving anyone, which either means they are doomed or perfect for each other. I still haven't decided."

"Why do you always meddle?"

"Isn't that why you came here?" Magnus wondered.

"I thought it would be rude to visit New York and not stop by," Ragnor said. Magnus frowned at that for some reason.

"You're always rude?"

Ragnor turned around and stepped out of the office. Alec shot Magnus a warning look. He couldn't just let his friend leave after a fight.

"You want me to help you with something," Magnus figured, and Ragnor turned back around.

"He doesn't want to see me alone, and I refuse to see him in Woolsey's company," Ragnor said.

"Ragnor, I really don't have time to…"

"I can go with you?" Alec offered. They both eyed him for a moment. "Don't look at me like that. You know Raphael likes me, well, at least he likes me more than he likes most people," Alec explained.

"I'll take it," Ragnor shrugged.

"Hold up, I'm not sure I'll risk my boy… fiancé to go into a war between you two," Magnus said.

"Fiancé? How about that. Congratulations, you finally found someone to settle down with. Now help me get me that someone," Ragnor said. Alec couldn't help but notice how emotionless this man sounded whenever he talked, and it made him wonder whether he even wanted Raphael back or if it was just the way he was. But he thought if not for Ragnor, he wanted to do it for Raphael. Despite Raphael's bad personality, Alec liked the guy. Especially after seeing a different side of him this Christmas. Alec wanted to help.

* * *

 _ **I'm really sorry it has taken me this long to finish the chapter. I was a bit nervous about some of the themes, because I don't have a lot of knowledge about neither intersex nor foster care. Let me know if I wrote something incorrect and I'll try to make up for it somehow.**_


	28. Chapter 28

**_I'm sorry it has taken me this long to give you another chapter, and it's a short and chaotic one. I've had a few requests to finish this story, so I'll still make a few more chapters to wrap it all up. It will probably be the first "longer" story I have ever really finished. I hope the next few chapters won't seem too rushed. Still, let me know what you think :)_  
**

* * *

 **Chaos**

"I can't believe you're going to play match-maker," Magnus said dramatically.

"Do you think he really loves Raphael?" Alec wondered. They were cooking dinner, while Max was watching TV.

"He seems to love him, but you can never be sure with Ragnor."

"Does he though? Seem like it, I mean?" Alec frowned.

"You don't know him, he's not good at showing emotions. He's always been a loner, which is probably why he's forty and going for people much younger than himself," Magnus shrugged.

"And what about Raphael?"

"If he's making such a big effort to get him back it must be love," Magnus replied.

Raphael had agreed to meet with Ragnor and Alec. Alec still had no idea what was going on between the two, and so he had no idea what he was getting himself into.

"They both sound a bit dramatic," Maxwell interrupted. They both looked towards the boy. Apparently, whatever Magnus had put on the TV for him hadn't been quite as interesting as the conversation they were having.

"They are," they both answered at the same time.

"Then you should appeal to their bullshit. If they want each other so obviously, call them out on their attention-seeking bullshit," Max shrugged.

"Did he just say 'bullshit' twice?" Magnus wondered.

"I think he did," Alec answered.

"No wonder he had to change school so often," Magnus said. Maxwell grimaced.

"I used to seek attention all the time, until someone called me out on it. It made me feel embarrassed and I stopped," Maxwell explained.

"Did you though?" Magnus asked in a high-pitched voice.

"I didn't know your boyfriend is a comedian as well," Maxwell looked at Alec with a frown.

"Fiancé. That's because he isn't."

"Ha ha. He's the funny one," Magnus replied flatly.

"Of course, if you don't want the two of them to end up together you could just go on a double date, and they'll realize that they don't want to be like you guys," Maxwell said and leaned back on the couch to continue watching television.

"Hey now," Magnus objected. "I'm going to regret asking this, but whatever makes you say that?"

"You two are so synced that even lesbians would probably feel threatened by you," Max said.

"How does he know so much about gay stereotypes?" Magnus tried to whisper to Alec, but Max could hear everything in the small apartment.

"Lesbian foster parents, remember?"

"Right, he's got cable. Figures," Magnus shrugged.

"Maybe Aline and Helen would adopt him?" Alec joked. Magnus grinned.

They went back to their cooking, and Alec started to feel like maybe one day, he really wanted to start a family with Magnus. But Alec also knew he was way too traditional to want to start one already. They needed to be married for at least a year, before they started to consider adopting.

"I saw your book in several windows on my way home today," Magnus said.

"Really?"

"It's going to be a bestseller within a week, I'll bet on it," Magnus said.

"Stop! You'll make me barf," Maxwell yelled from the couch.

"I just love him so much, it's going to be so sad when he leaves," Alec said with sarcasm.

"I know, whatever will we do without his snarky comments?" Magnus replied. It was their last night with Maxwell, but they had promised to keep the mood light.

"We'll just have to make the best of our last time together," Alec said, and gave Magnus a look. Magnus understood and they both dropped what they had in their hands and went to attack Maxwell from each side with one big hug. He tried to wrestle his way out of their grasp, but soon gave up.

"I can't breathe. Guys!" he exclaimed. They loosened their grip and the boy sighed. "You're so weird."

"Says the boy with blue hair," Magnus frowned.

"None of the foster families have this much love," the boy began to sulk. Magnus and Alec might have promised each other not to get too heavy the last night, but Maxwell hadn't been included in that conversation. It had all been for him anyway.

"You'll find one eventually. And if not, then you only have four more years before you can go out and find your own chosen family," Magnus said.

"And no matter what, you can always come visit us," Alec added.

"Absolutely," Magnus smiled.

Maxwell didn't seem all that convinced or happy with having to leave, but the group home they'd found him seemed alright and there was a few transgender kids there. Alec just hoped Max would connect with them, although his situation was a bit different.

After they'd said goodbye to him at the home, Alec had to go straight to see Ragnor and Raphael. He was kind of glad that he had something to do, or he might spend all day being sad about leaving Max. They would see him all the time anyway, he was only ten minutes away.

…

The three of them were meeting at Woolsey's. Woolsey was at work anyway, so Ragnor didn't have to see his so-called competition. Alec had a feeling Raphael was just being his usual drama queen self, because he certainly didn't seem like Woolsey's type at all. Woolsey just loved helping young adults in need.

Ragnor was waiting a bit away from the entrance.

"Let's get this over with," he said as a way of greeting Alec.

"Are you sure you even want him back?" Alec wondered.

"He's a brat sometimes, but that's what I like about him. I love talking trash about others, and so does he," the man shrugged. It seemed like an odd connection to base a relationship on, but Alec wouldn't know anything about it. He and Magnus weren't very much alike, and that was part of his attraction. Alec decided not to raise any other questions he might have, and knocked on the door. "I saw your book on the way over here. Nice cover," Ragnor said.

"Thanks. My friend made it. But you know, don't judge a book by it's cover," Alec smirked. Raphael opened the door, looking as snobbish as ever.

"Alec. Ragnor," he said and went inside. They followed him into the big hall, and then into one of Woolsey's studies.

"Why did you ask me here?" Ragnor began, when it was evident that Raphael wasn't going to say anything.

"Isn't it obvious?" Raphael retorted. Alec kept quiet, he wasn't going to intervene unless the conversation got really heated. "I want a boyfriend who's around."

"You knew from the very beginning I wouldn't be around. Besides, I offered you to come with me," Ragnor said.

"My heart is in New York," Raphael said.

"I thought it was with the one you love?"

"I love mi madre," Raphael shrugged.

"That's not what I meant," Ragnor rubbed his eyes with two fingers.

"I know what you meant, but my mom is sick, and I don't want to leave… and I don't want to be alone, when she's gone," he admitted suddenly. Alec hadn't known about this, and he now felt sorry for having had any rude thoughts about Raphael's behaviour, although this new information made him seem even more like a character on a telenovela. Alec just couldn't help how his mind worked.

"You should have just said so then," Ragnor sighed and stepped closer to the boy.

"Will you go with me to see her?" Raphael asked. Both Ragnor and Alec must have looked a bit shocked, because Raphael rolled his eyes. "Obviously I would introduce you as a friend or my boss or something. She's latina, I'm not gonna tell her I'm dating an old man while on her deadbed," he said.

"She'll think I'm your pimp if you say I'm your boss," Ragnor grinned, and Raphael actually chuckled. It was an odd sound, and Alec had never thought of Raphael as a person who would chuckle or even laugh. Alec's phone started buzzing in his pocket. It was Magnus, he was probably just checking to see if everyone was still alive, but Alec was glad to have an excuse to leave.

"It seems as if my presence is kind of worthless here, so I'm gonna go?" he said and dug out without waiting for an answer from either of them. "Hey."

" _Alec, you will not believe what Camille just did. You better get here asap,_ " Magnus said. He sounded serious and kind of mad.

"Oh, okay. I'll be right there," he said and hurried to get a cab. He had enough time on the way there to worry what Camille might have done. She might have destroyed some of Magnus' work, or she might have filmed them having sex the other day at the office, she could be blackmailing them. Once he arrived, Magnus didn't seem as upset as he'd sounded. "What's wrong? What did she do?"

"Relax, it's not something bad," Camille rolled her eyes.

"Camille, honey, I know Alec and he won't be happy," Magnus said.

"I'm right here, you don't have to talk about me as if I'm not?"

"Is Raphael still alive?" Camille wondered.

"He's still alive," Alec replied.

"Yipee," she said flatly, clearly unsatisfied with Raphael's status as living and breathing.

"What is going on?" Alec demanded.

"She outed us, to OUT magazine," Magnus said.

"So?"

"They want to do a wedding interview with us," Magnus answered carefully.

"Don't sell yourself short. They want you on the cover, in tuxes and everything," Camille said.

"Why?" Alec didn't understand.

"We're kind of becoming a celeb couple," Magnus said, as if he was a bit offended Alec hadn't noticed his own book in all the shop windows.

"But you're always behind the camera?"

"I'm still famous?"

"I know you're famous, but you are not 'on-the-cover-of-magazines' famous?"

"I guess it helps to be en-gay-ged. See what I did there?"

"You're hilarious, babe," Alec replied flatly.

"I'm guessing you won't do it?" Magnus asked. Alec studied him for a moment, and noticed he actually looked disappointed.

"I don't know. I guess I'll have to think about it," he shrugged.

"Of course."

"I'm not exactly photogenic," Alec said.

"You did not just say that to your photographer fiancé," Camille held her hands up in surrender and left, probably because she just "couldn't deal".

"You're photogenic. Remember our first photoshoot?" Magnus reminded him flirtatiously.

"Vaguely," Alec tried to flirt back.

"We'll just answer some ordinary couples questions and then do a shoot in fancy tuxedos," Magnus said.

"And then see our faces on the cover everywhere?"

"See, you've already thought this through," Magnus winked. Alec chuckled. He knew it would make Magnus happy, because although the man had never been a very couply guy before, he was with Alec. It was Alec's own fault for trapping him into a marriage.

"Okay, fine," Alec sighed.

"Yay. My fiancé is so famous and handsome and popular," Magnus said and kissed Alec lightly.

"I'm not posing shirtless," Alec said, as Camille came back into view. She frowned.

"What kind of magazine do you think it is?"

"A gay one?" Alec replied. Camille rolled her eyes.

"Tuxedos," Magnus promised.

…

It felt odd to be in the apartment after Max had left. Alec had to get used to it again.

"Do you think we'll ever have kids of our own?" Alec wondered, while he was cleaning up after dinner.

"I think we talked about this before?"

"We could apply to become foster parents once we're married," Alec suggested. "We could help out kids like Maxwell."

"We'll need a bigger place to live then."

"Did you plan on staying here forever?" Alec looked back at his fiancé.

"I don't know. I didn't think about it before," Magnus shrugged. Alec frowned before he could help it.

"Okay."

"You're mad?"

"No, I just think it's odd. But I understand," Alec shrugged, and went back to the dishes. "Just tell me if I'm expecting you to change too much?"

"I don't know what you expect of me?"

"Do you feel I've pushed you into being different?"

"No?" Magnus frowned now. "Look, babe, I love the person I am when I'm with you. You spent some time with Ragnor and Raphael today? I used to be so much like them, and I hated it."

"You were not like them," Alec objected with a snigger.

"I liked drama," Magnus tried. "How did it go anyway?"

"I think we're going to have a double wedding," Alec teased.

"Don't even joke about that," he rolled his eyes. "Don't doubt how much I can't wait to be married to you."

"Well, you won't have to wait much longer," Alec grinned, and put down the last dishes. He walked over to his fiancé. "Mr. Lightwood-Bane."

"Did you remember the hyphen?" Magnus asked flirtatiously.

"You know it," Alec answered with the same amount of flirting, and kissed Magnus passionately. Alec melted into Magnus' arms, nearly forgetting everything about this chaotic and stressful day, and instead thinking of how they had nearly everything planned for the wedding. Jace and Woolsey would be their best men, Izzy was their flower girl and even Robert had accepted the invitation to come. Alec had nearly convinced Jace and Simon not to give him a bachelor party, but despite their promises, Alec had a feeling it didn't quite stick with the two of them. Hopefully, they wouldn't know to invite Magnus' friends. Alec's train of thought eventually arrived at today's events, and he chuckled against Magnus' lips.

"Did I do something funny?" Magnus' eyebrows went up.

"No, I just thought of Raphael and Ragnor making up."

"Oh gosh, were they gross?" Magnus grimaced.

"No. But Raphael laughed at Ragnor's joke," Alec mimicked Magnus' grimace.

"Oh dear. I'm sorry you had to go through that. Can I do anything to make it up to you?"

"I can think of a few things," Alec grinned.


	29. Chapter 29

**OUT**

The photoshoot for OUT magazine took a few hours, but Alec actually had fun. They made Magnus and him pose in different ways and different suits, and none of them crossed any of Alec's lines. While Alec was put into some of the more traditional suits, Magnus was in modern outfits in crazy fabrics and patterns, and each time they matched somehow. It suited their personalities so well. The photographer was also great, though Magnus made a few comments during the shoot.

Afterwards they had to talk to a journalist about their relationship, how they met, how it works out for two people who are so different. They talked about what they love about each other. Magnus loved Alec's blue eyes and black hair, of course, but then he started explaining the little things Alec did every day, and it suddenly seemed a bit too personal to be sharing with a stranger. That's why Alec just explained how much he loved Magnus' passion for what he did, it seemed the most reasonable response to the question, yet less personal. Of course, they had to talk about the wedding as well. They didn't tell any details, only that it was going to be a small wedding with their closest family and friends.

Alec was exhausted and relieved once the entire thing was done, even though he'd had fun at first. He didn't like telling strangers about personal things the way Magnus seemed to enjoy it. Alec decided, on their way home, that Magnus had only been on and on about Alec's personality because he loved him so much.

"I wonder," Alec began, as they entered the apartment. "Do you make a habit out of telling strangers every detail about my behaviour?"

"Are you angry?" Magnus frowned.

"No, I just think it was a bit odd. I mean, did he really have to know how I bite my nails and pencils when I concentrate?"

"Oh my God, you're angry," Magnus replied with amusement. "He's not gonna print it, it's boring to anyone but me. I like the little face you make when you do it. Besides, I didn't tell him about _everything_ you like to dig your teeth into," Magnus grinned, and pulled Alec close to him. Alec faltered and adjusted himself against Magnus' body. Alec smirked. He leaned in to lick Magnus' earlobe, before biting down softly. A knock on the door made Magnus groan loudly with dissatisfaction.

"To be continued," Alec winked, and went to open the door. He barely got to see who it was, before they attacked him with crazy energy that Alec did not share after a long day with interview and photoshoot. "Jace?"

"Are you ready for your bachelor party?" Jace grinned.

"No?" Alec sighed.

"We figured since you didn't want one, we would meet you halfway and we'd have half a bachelor party," Jace said.

"Actually we're just going out for fancy drinks and male strippers," Simon said. Magnus approached the three of them, clearing his throat.

"Excuse me?"

"I was just kidding about the strippers, there's not gonna be strippers. I just didn't want it to sound boring," Simon shrugged.

"Good," Magnus smiled.

"I could actually use a boring night with fancy drinks," Alec said. Jace had come here, all the way to New York. He would be stupid to pass up a night out with his old friends.

"That's what I like to hear from my gay best friend," Jace winked.

"Let me just go change my clothes," Alec said.

"I'll come with you," Magnus said, and followed Alec to the bed "room". He acted like they had actual privacy behind the nearly transparent walls of their bedroom. Magnus pushed Alec away from the closet softly, and found him a pair of jeans and a sweater, which was very much Alec and after a year with Magnus it wasn't something he would have picked out for himself anymore. Alec frowned at his fiancé.

"I'm going out, I'm not going to Taki's?" he said.

"I know you've changed a lot for me too. I want you to have one night of being yourself, before you have to consider everything from my perspective for the rest of your life," Magnus said, looking surprisingly sad.

"I am myself. I've grown. I might have worn that out for drinks a year ago, but I was a different person then," Alec said in a low voice, trying to keep the conversation private. Instead he reached into the closet and found a casual pair of suit pants and a blazer. He put on his clothes, while Magnus watched quietly from the bed with a more peaceful expression now.

"You're so hot," he whispered. Alec grinned and leaned down to kiss him on the lips, before he walked out to his friends waiting. Jace had helped himself to a glass of wine, and Simon was sprawled on the couch under Chairman Meow, who purred loud enough for Alec to hear it a few feet away.

"Are you ready to go?" Jace asked, bottoming his glass of wine.

"Can I come?" Magnus asked.

"No," Jace answered quickly. Magnus frowned, and Alec mirrored the expression at Jace' very quick answer. Jace sighed and put down his empty glass. "I wasn't going to say, but Woolsey and the girls have something planned for you."

"Izzy is going with Magnus?" Alec asked, surprised at how disappointed he felt. He'd have thought if his sister was going to a bachelor party it would have been his.

"She wanted us to have a guys' night, but she also wanted a party, so I'm sorry Magnus, but you got the girls," Jace shrugged apologetically.

"I don't mind, as long as I get a party," he smirked.

…

The first club the boys went to was very crowded, but they had made a plan to go to as many clubs as possible and get at least one drink each place. It was like a pub crawl, except with nightclubs and Jace had had to make a few reservations in advance, because most of the nightclubs were exclusive. Alec was impressed with his friends' selections. Obviously Simon must have had help from his work friends, who were probably more familiar with the scene than any of them.

"You know, it was kind of easy to get these reservations," Jace said, when they'd gotten into Riff Raff's to Alec's great surprise. "I just had to tell them you were Magnus' fiancé. He's kind of famous in the nightclub scene," Jace explained.

"I'm surprised they remember his name. It's been a while since he's really been out," Alec shrugged. The three of them ordered a few tropical drinks, as they stayed at the lounge for a while.

"Are you ready for the big day?" Jace asked with a smirk.

"Yeah, everything is planned," Alec smiled.

"You're not nervous?"

"No?" Alec was incredibly nervous. He was nervous about everything. He was nervous that Magnus would get cold feet and realize he didn't want to get tied down. He was nervous they would lose the rings on the day. He was nervous the catering firm wouldn't deliver. He was nervous his dad would make a terrible speech that would scar him and everyone attending for life.

"You're nervous. I can tell. I was nervous too," Jace winked at him. Alec frowned.

"If it helps, Magnus really loves you. I couldn't imagine him without you," Simon said.

"Or the other way around," Jace added.

"Weren't this supposed to be guys' night and not girls' night?" Alec frowned.

"Jesus, what's up your tight ass?" Jace sniggered, and Simon hit him on the arm, but it seemed to hurt Simon more than it hurt Jace. "What, wrong thing to ask a gay guy?" he chuckled.

"I've spent all day talking about my perfect relationship and engagement. I'm all fed up, which is why I willingly wanted to go out with you guys tonight. So don't ruin it," Alec warned.

"Right. The interview. How did it go?"

"Magnus likes oversharing," Alec shrugged.

"He's just happy. People like to brag when they're happy," Simon said. "I remember when Clary first started seeing this guy, I thought the constant yapping about beautiful Jace would never end."

"Are you saying it did end?" Jace frowned.

"No, I moved to New York so it would be in smaller doses," Simon replied. Alec tried to hide his amusement with the turn of the conversation by taking a sip from his tropical drink. This was nice. It had been a while since he'd been out with his two friends.

After a few hours and many drinks, they ended up drunk and at Provoc, which Woolsey of course got them into. The place was filled with models and actors, but the best thing about the place was Magnus being there, and he was at least as drunk as Alec. Izzy informed Alec about everything they'd been doing this evening, which Alec was sure he would just forget the next morning, but he engaged in the conversation anyway. Clary was there as well, she'd gotten the weekend off, although she'd started working with some author on a graphic novel. Alec wished he would at least remember that piece of information in the morning. He recalled how much he'd hated Clary in the beginning of her and Jace's relationship, but now he loved her nearly as much as his own sister, and most of all – he admired her.

"I'm really proud of her," Jace said, after Clary had explained her work.

"You should be," Alec agreed.

"I'll probably quit my job and be her trophy wife," Jace continued.

"You guys are drunk. I'll be over here," Clary said and pointed at the corner, where Izzy and Magnus were placed next to Magnus' friends.

"I weren't joking, babe. Babe?" Jace called after her, but she didn't turn back around.

Alec was really happy to see how much his sister and Magnus enjoyed each other's company. It was something he'd always loved, from the moment they met. Izzy hadn't always been an easy person to be around. She was too real to want to spent time with someone she didn't like, and she never tried to hide her dislike.

"You're lucky," Jace's voice cut through Alec's thoughts.

"Hmm?" Alec looked back at his friend, only then realizing he'd been staring at his fiancé.

"I know it's been difficult for you, coming out and everything. There was a time when I thought you would never find anyone, because you were hung up on me," Jace said.

"What?" Alec objected.

"Alec, I knew you weren't in love with me, but I also know that you didn't know yourself. And I was selfish, I didn't say anything at the beginning because I wanted you with me always. Love changed that for me too, just like you were able to move all the way to New York for love," Jace continued.

"Gees, save something for the speech, will you?" Alec rolled his eyes, because he was too drunk for this conversation. But Jace seemed just the right amount of drunk for it.

"I wrote it down so I don't forget," he joked, and then he got serious again. "I love you, man."

"Should we get out of here and pull a Thelma and Louise?" Alec teased.

"I'm serious. Come here," Jace sighed and pulled Alec into a hug. Alec looked over Jace's shoulder at Magnus, he was smiling at him. Alec tried to signal his fiancé with his eyes to meet him outside. Magnus got up and left the club immediately. Alec pulled back, and looked at Jace.

"Thanks. For being here, for always being here. Also, you get a little gay when you're drunk," Alec winked.

"Ha ha. You're funnier when you're drunk," Jace replied.

"I'm gonna get some fresh air," Alec said.

"I'll go with you?"

"No need. I…" Alec didn't want to lie to Jace, he wasn't sure if he would be right back or if Magnus too wanted to leave this party. Jace seemed to understand, once he noticed Magnus wasn't with his friends anymore.

"Ah. Sure, I'll see you later," he said and walked up to the table with the others.

Alec hurried outside, and didn't see Magnus right away, but an arm reached out and pulled him into the alley behind a building. Alec could tell by the look in Magnus' eyes just how drunk he was. He had been the same kind of drunk the first time the two of them had gone out, and Magnus had passed out on two girls. Magnus' kiss was sloppy.

"Did you have fun tonight?" Alec asked.

"Yeah. Well, there was this one fight between Ragnor and Raphael I wouldn't want to watch again, but other than that everything was peachy," Magnus said.

"Peachy?"

"Hey, I missed you," Magnus put his flirt on. He was clearly too drunk to talk about their nights.

"Should we leave the party?" Alec flirted back.

"You read my mind."

Alec hailed a cab, and managed to get Magnus into the cab without bumping his head. The conversation with Jace seemed to have sobered Alec up a bit. Or perhaps it was seeing Magnus more drunk that did the trick, either way, Alec and Magnus got to their apartment and Magnus fell onto the bed still wearing all of his clothes.

"Mags, you're still in your clothes," he sighed.

"I know, why haven't you undressed me yet?"

"Because it's wrong to take advantage of someone drunk? Even if it's your fiancé," Alec said, and started undressing Magnus anyway, but for practical reasons.

"You're drunk too?"

"Doesn't make it more appropriate," Alec informed. Once Magnus was dressed down to his underwear, Alec went to the kitchen and got him a glass of water. When he got back to the bed, Magnus had removed his underwear and had posed himself on the bed in a position he, in his drunken state of mind, probably thought was sexy. Instead it looked corny. "You're minutes away from passing out," Alec chuckled.

"Then you better hurry," Magnus was incorrigible. Alec made him drink the glass of water before settling down on top of him, kissing him softly. "Well, with that pace I'll be asleep much sooner," he teased. Alec's legs was placed on either side of Magnus' thighs.

"Did you get strippers tonight?" he wondered.

"No."

"No lapdance?" Alec rolled his hips.

"No," Magnus grinned. He didn't look that tired anymore. Hopefully, the water had helped some.

"I don't know how to do a lapdance," Alec admitted, still just rolling his hips, rubbing against Magnus.

"Just keep doing what you're doing," Magnus breathed. Alec obliged and continued to roll against Magnus' growing erection, until finally Magnus had had enough of flipped him over on the bed. "I can't believe you think I would ever fall asleep with all of this in front of me."

"Ever?" Alec raised his eyebrows with disbelief. He was pinned against the mattrass, Magnus holding his arms down by the wrists. "Not even when I'm old and wrinkled, and my hair is gray?"

"I think you'll look great with gray hair," Magnus decided quickly.

"Yeah?"

"I can't wait to call you husband," Magnus said, and before Alec could reply Magnus was kissing him again and everything seemed to melt into that kiss, and at some point the rest of the clothes Alec was wearing went off. Magnus didn't fall asleep, not until after he'd made love to Alec and Alec had moaned _I love you's_ in between kissing.

…

Alec woke up early the next day, at least 10 AM seemed early considering the time they'd gotten home. He got up to make coffee for the headache that had woken him up. Chairman Meow came out of one of his hiding places and walked around Alec's naked feet, tickling him with his fur, until Alec fed him.

"Alec?" Magnus called.

"What's up?"

"I have a headache," Magnus groaned.

"I'm making coffee," Alec replied. There was no answer, instead he heard Magnus get out of bed and walk up behind him.

"Come back to bed," he mumbled into Alec's ear.

"I'll be right there."

"Let's spent all day in bed and not even let the sun get inside these walls?"

"Sounds like a plan. I'll be right up with the coffee. Should we get our pajamas?" Alec asked.

"Why?" Magnus frowned, stroking Alec's bare chest. Alec thought for a moment.

"Nevermind, I can't think of any reason why."

"Good," Magnus said and went back to bed.

Alec poured them both a cup of coffee, and warmed up some waffles to place on a tray, so they could have breakfast in bed.

"Don't expect this kind of service when we're a married couple," Alec teased.

"Noted," Magnus said and downed nearly half of his coffee at once.

Alec could hardly wait to be married and spend the rest of his life with Magnus Bane.

* * *

 _ **Another short chapter. I hope you liked it. Let me know what you thought, and if you have any last minute ideas/wishes for the wedding, now is the time to let me know :)**_


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